1. Nano-sized polystyrene and magnetite collectively promote biofilm stability and resistance due to enhanced oxidative stress response.
- Author
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Wang H, Hu C, Li Y, Shen Y, Guo J, Shi B, Alvarez PJJ, and Yu P
- Subjects
- Nanoparticles toxicity, Nanoparticles chemistry, Ferrosoferric Oxide chemistry, Ferrosoferric Oxide toxicity, Quorum Sensing drug effects, Drug Resistance, Bacterial drug effects, Magnetite Nanoparticles toxicity, Magnetite Nanoparticles chemistry, Microbial Sensitivity Tests, Biofilms drug effects, Oxidative Stress drug effects, Pseudomonas aeruginosa drug effects, Polystyrenes toxicity, Polystyrenes chemistry, Anti-Bacterial Agents pharmacology, Anti-Bacterial Agents chemistry, Anti-Bacterial Agents toxicity, Reactive Oxygen Species metabolism
- Abstract
Despite the growing prevalence of nanoplastics in drinking water distribution systems, the collective influence of nanoplastics and background nanoparticles on biofilm formation and microbial risks remains largely unexplored. Here, we demonstrate that nano-sized polystyrene modified with carboxyl groups (nPS) and background magnetite (nFe
3 O4 ) nanoparticles at environmentally relevant concentrations can collectively stimulate biofilm formation and prompt antibiotic resistance. Combined exposure of nPS and nFe3 O4 by P. aeruginosa biofilm cells stimulated intracellular reactive oxidative species (ROS) production more significantly compared with individual exposure. The resultant upregulation of quorum sensing (QS) and c-di-GMP signaling pathways enhanced the biosynthesis of polysaccharides by 50 %- 66 % and increased biofilm biomass by 36 %- 40 % relative to unexposed control. Consistently, biofilm mechanical stability (measured as Young's modulus) increased by 7.2-9.1 folds, and chemical stress resistance (measured with chlorine disinfection) increased by 1.4-2.0 folds. For P. aeruginosa, the minimal inhibitory concentration of different antibiotics also increased by 1.1-2.5 folds after combined exposure. Moreover, at a microbial community-wide level, metagenomic analysis revealed that the combined exposure enhanced the multi-species biofilm's resistance to chlorine, enriched the opportunistic pathogenic bacteria, and promoted their virulence and antibiotic resistance. Overall, the enhanced formation of biofilms (that may harbor opportunistic pathogens) by nanoplastics and background nanoparticles is an overlooked phenomenon, which may jeopardize the microbial safety of drinking water distribution systems., Competing Interests: Declaration of Competing Interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2024 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)- Published
- 2024
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