Bacterial community assembly and antibiotic resistance genes in the lettuce-soil system upon antibiotic exposure

Abstract Bacteria and antibiotic resistance genes (ARGs) in vegetables may influence human gut microbiome and ultimately human health. However, little is known about how vegetable microbiomes and ARGs respond to exposure of anthropogenic antibiotics from crop irrigation water. This study investigated bacterial community assembly and ARG profiles in lettuce (Lactuca sativa) shoots and roots, rhizosphere soil, and bulk soil irrigated with antibiotics-containing water, using 16S rRNA amplicon sequencing and high throughput real-time qPCR, respectively. With antibiotic exposure alpha diversity values remained unchanged for the rhizosphere soil and lettuce roots, but were significantly decreased for the bulk soil and lettuce shoots (p