PRJNA384132
Bacteria in microplastic biofilms have a distinct permissiveness to acquisition of antibiotic resistance genes in aquatic ecosystems
In this study, we analyzed the plasmid transfer permissiveness of freshwater bacteria forming biofilms on MP vs. those free-living (FL). We performed mating experiments using as a donor-plasmid system an exogenous E. coli carrying a gfp-tagged broad-host-range plasmid encoding for Trimethoprim resistance. We determined the transfer frequency and taxonomy of the transconjugants using epifluorescence microscopy, flow cytometry, and 16S rRNA gene sequencing.