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Tracking Change : A Look at the Ecological Footprint of Antibiotics and Antimicrobial Resistance Keen, Patricia L.; Patrick, David, (Physician)

Abstract

Among the class of pollutants considered as ‘emerging contaminants’, antibiotic compounds including drugs used in medical therapy, biocides and disinfectants merit special consideration because their bioactivity in the environment is the result of their functional design. Antibiotics can alter the structure and function of microbial communities in the receiving environment and facilitate the development and spread of resistance in critical species of bacteria including pathogens. Methanogenesis, nitrogen transformation and sulphate reduction are among the key ecosystem processes performed by bacteria in nature that can also be affected by the impacts of environmental contamination by antibiotics. Together, the effects of the development of resistance in bacteria involved in maintaining overall ecosystem health and the development of resistance in human, animal and fish pathogens, make serious contributions to the risks associated with environmental pollution by antibiotics. In this brief review, we discuss the multiple impacts on human and ecosystem health of environmental contamination by antibiotic compounds.

Item Metadata

Title
Tracking Change : A Look at the Ecological Footprint of Antibiotics and Antimicrobial Resistance
Creator
Keen, Patricia L.; Patrick, David, (Physician)
Publisher
Multidisciplinary Digital Publishing Institute
Date Issued
2013-03-27
Description
Among the class of pollutants considered as ‘emerging contaminants’, antibiotic compounds including drugs used in medical therapy, biocides and disinfectants merit special consideration because their bioactivity in the environment is the result of their functional design. Antibiotics can alter the structure and function of microbial communities in the receiving environment and facilitate the development and spread of resistance in critical species of bacteria including pathogens. Methanogenesis, nitrogen transformation and sulphate reduction are among the key ecosystem processes performed by bacteria in nature that can also be affected by the impacts of environmental contamination by antibiotics. Together, the effects of the development of resistance in bacteria involved in maintaining overall ecosystem health and the development of resistance in human, animal and fish pathogens, make serious contributions to the risks associated with environmental pollution by antibiotics. In this brief review, we discuss the multiple impacts on human and ecosystem health of environmental contamination by antibiotic compounds.
Subject
Antibiotics; Environment; Antimicrobial resistance; Health
Genre
Article
Type
Text
Language
eng
Date Available
2019-04-08
Provider
Vancouver : University of British Columbia Library
Rights
CC BY 3.0
DOI
10.14288/1.0377862
URI
http://hdl.handle.net/2429/69505
Affiliation
Applied Science, Faculty of; Medicine, Faculty of; Civil Engineering, Department of; Population and Public Health (SPPH), School of
Citation
Antibiotics 2 (2): 191-205 (2013)
Publisher DOI
10.3390/antibiotics2020191
Peer Review Status
Reviewed
Scholarly Level
Faculty
Rights URI
https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc-sa/3.0/
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CC BY 3.0