title: Antibiotic resistance marker genes as environmental pollutants in GMO-pristine agricultural soils in Austria.
abstract: Antibiotic resistance genes may be considered as environmental pollutants if anthropogenic emission and manipulations increase their prevalence above usually occurring background levels. The prevalence of aph(3')-IIa/nptII and aph(3')-IIIa/nptIII - frequent marker genes in plant biotechnology conferring resistance to certain aminoglycosides - was determined in Austrian soils from 100 maize and potato fields not yet exposed to but eligible for GMO crop cultivation. Total soil DNA extracts were analysed by nptII/nptIII-specific TaqMan real time PCR. Of all fields 6% were positive for nptII (median: 150 copies/g soil; range: 31-856) and 85% for nptIII (1190 copies/g soil; 13-61600). The copy-number deduced prevalence of nptIII carriers was 14-fold higher compared to nptII. Of the cultivable kanamycin-resistant soil bacteria 1.8% (95% confidence interval: 0-3.3%) were positive for nptIII, none for nptII (0-0.8%). The nptII-load of the studied soils was low rendering nptII a typical candidate as environmental pollutant upon anthropogenic release into these ecosystems.
authors.affiliation: Division for Data, Statistics and Risk Assessment, Austrian Agency for Health and Food Safety (AGES - Österreichische Agentur für Gesundheit und Ernährungssicherheit), Vienna and Graz, Austria. Electronic address: markus.woegerbauer@ages.at.
authors.forename: Markus
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Woegerbauer
authors.affiliation: Division for Public Health, Austrian Agency for Health and Food Safety (AGES - Österreichische Agentur für Gesundheit und Ernährungssicherheit), Vienna, Austria.
authors.forename: Josef
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Zeinzinger
authors.affiliation: Division for Food Security, Austrian Agency for Health and Food Safety (AGES - Österreichische Agentur für Gesundheit und Ernährungssicherheit), Vienna, Austria.
authors.forename: Richard Alexander
authors.initials: RA
authors.lastname: Gottsberger
authors.affiliation: Department of Integrative Biology and Biodiversity Research (DIB), Institute of Zoology, University of Natural Resources and Life Sciences, Vienna, Austria.
authors.forename: Kathrin
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Pascher
authors.affiliation: Division for Public Health, Austrian Agency for Health and Food Safety (AGES - Österreichische Agentur für Gesundheit und Ernährungssicherheit), Vienna, Austria.
authors.forename: Peter
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Hufnagl
authors.affiliation: Division for Public Health, Austrian Agency for Health and Food Safety (AGES - Österreichische Agentur für Gesundheit und Ernährungssicherheit), Vienna, Austria.
authors.forename: Alexander
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Indra
authors.affiliation: Division for Data, Statistics and Risk Assessment, Austrian Agency for Health and Food Safety (AGES - Österreichische Agentur für Gesundheit und Ernährungssicherheit), Vienna and Graz, Austria.
authors.forename: Reinhard
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Fuchs
authors.affiliation: Division for Data, Statistics and Risk Assessment, Austrian Agency for Health and Food Safety (AGES - Österreichische Agentur für Gesundheit und Ernährungssicherheit), Vienna and Graz, Austria.
authors.forename: Johannes
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Hofrichter
authors.affiliation: Division for Data, Statistics and Risk Assessment, Austrian Agency for Health and Food Safety (AGES - Österreichische Agentur für Gesundheit und Ernährungssicherheit), Vienna and Graz, Austria.
authors.forename: Ian
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Kopacka
authors.affiliation: Ingenetix, Vienna, Austria.
authors.forename: Irina
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Korschineck
authors.affiliation: Division for Data, Statistics and Risk Assessment, Austrian Agency for Health and Food Safety (AGES - Österreichische Agentur für Gesundheit und Ernährungssicherheit), Vienna and Graz, Austria.
authors.forename: Corina
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Schleicher
authors.affiliation: Division for Data, Statistics and Risk Assessment, Austrian Agency for Health and Food Safety (AGES - Österreichische Agentur für Gesundheit und Ernährungssicherheit), Vienna and Graz, Austria.
authors.forename: Michael
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Schwarz
authors.affiliation: Division for Data, Statistics and Risk Assessment, Austrian Agency for Health and Food Safety (AGES - Österreichische Agentur für Gesundheit und Ernährungssicherheit), Vienna and Graz, Austria.
authors.forename: Johann
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Steinwider
authors.affiliation: Division for Public Health, Austrian Agency for Health and Food Safety (AGES - Österreichische Agentur für Gesundheit und Ernährungssicherheit), Vienna, Austria.
authors.forename: Burkhard
authors.initials: B
authors.lastname: Springer
authors.affiliation: Division for Public Health, Austrian Agency for Health and Food Safety (AGES - Österreichische Agentur für Gesundheit und Ernährungssicherheit), Vienna, Austria.
authors.forename: Franz
authors.initials: F
authors.lastname: Allerberger
authors.affiliation: GenØk - Centre for Biosafety and Department of Pharmacy, University of Tromsø, Norway.
authors.forename: Kaare M
authors.initials: KM
authors.lastname: Nielsen
authors.affiliation: Division for Data, Statistics and Risk Assessment, Austrian Agency for Health and Food Safety (AGES - Österreichische Agentur für Gesundheit und Ernährungssicherheit), Vienna and Graz, Austria.
authors.forename: Klemens
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Fuchs
mesh_terms: D000900:Anti-Bacterial Agents / Q000032:analysis*; D001317:Austria; D018556:Crops, Agricultural / Q000235:genetics / Q000254:growth & development*; D004269:DNA, Bacterial / Q000235:genetics; D024881:Drug Resistance, Bacterial / Q000235:genetics*; D005798:Genes, Bacterial; D007613:Kanamycin Resistance / Q000235:genetics; D012987:Soil / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000592:standards; D012988:Soil Microbiology; D012989:Soil Pollutants / Q000032:analysis*; D011198:Solanum tuberosum / Q000235:genetics / Q000254:growth & development; D003313:Zea mays / Q000235:genetics / Q000254:growth & development
chemical_list: D000900:Anti-Bacterial Agents; D004269:DNA, Bacterial; D012987:Soil; D012989:Soil Pollutants
keywords: Aminoglycosides; Antibiotics; Real time PCR; Resistance; Soil contamination