This review synthesizes mechanisms of microplastics in spreading antibiotic resistance genes in marine environments, indicating serious ecological risks.
Key Points
This review explores how microplastics contribute to the spread of antibiotic resistance genes in marine ecosystems.
Conducted a bibliometric analysis of 144 studies from Scopus
Synthesize mechanistic pathways involving microplastics as vectors for ARG transmission
Discuss interactions between environmental factors and resistance dissemination
Microplastics enhance microbial colonization and biofilm formation
Environmental factors like salinity and nutrients accelerate gene transfer
Resistance propagation is amplified by co-selection pressures from heavy metals and antibiotics