Microplastics (MPs) are ubiquitous in wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs) and provide a unique niche for the spread of pollutants. To date, risk assessments and driving mechanisms of pathogens, antibiotic resistance genes (ARGs), and virulence factors (VFs) in the plastisphere are still lacking. Here, the microbiota, ARGs, VFs, their potential health risks, and biologically driving mechanisms on polythene (PE), polyethylene terephthalate (PET), poly (butyleneadipate-co-terephthalate) and polylactic acid blends (PBAT/PLA), PLA MPs, and gravel in WWTP effluent were investigated. The results showed that plastisphere and gravel biofilm harbored more distinctive microorganisms, promoting the uniqueness of pathogens, ARGs, and VFs compared to WWTP effluent. The abundance of major pathogens, ARGs, and VFs in the plastisphere was 1.01–1.35 times higher than that in the effluent. The high health risk of ARGs (HRA) calculated by fully considering the abundance, clinical relevance, pathogenicity, accessibility and mobility, and the high proportion of resistance contigs with mobile genetic elements confirmed that the plastisphere posed the highest potential health risk. Candidatus Microthrix and Candidatus Promineifilum were the essential hosts of ARGs and VFs in the plastisphere and gravel biofilm, respectively. High metabolic activity such as amino acid metabolism and biosynthesis of secondary metabolites, and highly expressed key genes increased the synthesis of ARGs and VFs. The primary mechanisms driving ARG enrichment in the plastisphere were enhanced microbial metabolic activity, increased frequency of horizontal gene transfer, heightened antibiotic inactivation and efflux, and reduced cell permeability. This study provided new insights into the ARGs, VFs, and health risks of the plastisphere and emphasized the importance of strict control of wastewater discharge.

中文翻译：

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污水处理厂污水中塑料球中的抗生素耐药基因和毒力因子：健康风险量化和驱动机制解释


微塑料 （MP） 在污水处理厂 （WWTP） 中无处不在，为污染物的传播提供了独特的生态位。迄今为止，塑料圈中病原体、抗生素耐药基因 （ARG） 和毒力因子 （VF） 的风险评估和驱动机制仍然缺乏。在这里，研究了污水处理厂污水中的微生物群、ARGs、VFs、它们的潜在健康风险以及聚乙烯 （PE）、聚对苯二甲酸乙二醇酯 （PET）、聚（己二酸丁二醇酯-对苯二甲酸丁二醇酯）和聚乳酸混合物 （PBAT/PLA）、PLA MPs 和砾石的生物驱动机制。结果表明，与 WWTP 污水相比，塑料圈和砾石生物膜含有更多独特的微生物，促进了病原体、ARGs 和 VFs 的独特性。塑料圈中主要病原体、ARGs 和 VF 的丰度是污水中 1.01-1.35 倍。通过充分考虑活性物质的丰度、临床相关性、致病性、可及性和流动性计算出 ARGs 的高健康风险 （HRA），以及具有移动遗传元件的高比例抗性重叠群，证实了塑料圈构成最高的潜在健康风险。Candidatus microthrix 和 Candidatus Promineifilum 分别是塑料圈和砾石生物膜中 ARGs 和 VFs 的重要宿主。氨基酸代谢和次生代谢产物的生物合成等高代谢活性以及高表达的关键基因增加了 ARGs 和 VFs 的合成。驱动 ARG 在质体球中富集的主要机制是增强微生物代谢活性、增加水平基因转移频率、增加抗生素灭活和外排以及降低细胞通透性。 这项研究为塑料圈的 ARGs、VFs 和健康风险提供了新的见解，并强调了严格控制废水排放的重要性。