Effects of anthropogenic disturbances on health risks of river in wildlife habitat - based on analysis of antibiotic resistance genes and virulence factor genes in microbes of river sediment

In the context of human-animal-ecosystem interactions, exploring environmental pathogen that induce wildlife diseases amidst human disturbance is pivotal within "One Health". In this study, we examined the impact of anthropogenic disturbance factors on the health risks associated with potential pathogenic antibiotic resistant bacteria (PARB; carrying both antibiotic resistance genes (ARGs) and virulence factor genes (VFGs)) in microbes of river sediment within reserve, and then analyzed the potential threats posed to the health of wild animals. The study focused on wildlife habitats affected by various human disturbances, including agricultural cultivation (WA), grazing management (WG) and domestic sewage (WS). The study utilized metagenomics to analyze characteristics of PARB in river sediment microbes. Then, the total contribution of ARGs and VFGs was used to assess the health risk posed by PARB. Furthermore, the potential transmission of PARB and its resistance to wildlife was investigated through plasmid analysis. There were 5, 16, 15, and 13 kinds of PARB in the microbes of river sediment in control group (CK), WA, WG, and WS, respectively. And the total health risks of PARB in CK, WA, WG and WS were 0.067E-3, -1.55E-3, 87.93E-3 and 153.53E-3, respectively. Then, the findings also revealed that plasmids carrying ARGs were identified in areas influenced by WA, WG and WS but not detected in CK. Principal component analysis (PCA) results indicated that adjusting key environmental factors could reduce microbial risks. These results indicate that human disturbance activities elevate the risk of PARB in protected rivers, and necessary measures should be taken to prevent it from posing a potential threat to wildlife health.