Plasmid transfer in wastewater treatment plant microbial community

Wastewater treatment plant as interfaces between different environmental compartments, such as hospital/residential sewage and surface waters, has long been proposed as significant environmental reservoir of antibiotic resistance genes (ARGs). The anthropogenic ecosystem directly exposes the mixture of human gut microbiota and environmental bacteria to pharmaceutical residues, favoring the emergence and dissemination of ARGs. However, contribution of microbial communities in WWTP to current ARG proliferation remains poorly understood. Here, we examined for the first time plasmid permissiveness in activated sludge microbial communities by utilizing the well-established fluorescent reporter platform – solid surface filter mating assay.