Antimicrobial Resistance in the Environment (eBook)

Examines effects of the environmental distribution of
antimicrobial resistance genes on human health and the
ecosystem

Resistance genes are everywhere in nature--in pathogens,
commensals, and environmental microorganisms. This contributed work
shows how the environment plays a pivotal role in the development
of antimicrobial resistance traits in bacteria and the distribution
of resistant microbial species, resistant genetic material, and
antibiotic compounds. Readers will discover the impact of the
distribution in the environment of antimicrobial resistance genes
and antibiotics on both the ecosystem and human and animal
health.

Antimicrobial Resistance in the Environment is divided into four
parts:

* Part I, Sources, including ecological and clinical consequences
of antibiotic resistance by environmental microbes

* Part II, Fate, including strategies to assess and minimize the
biological risk of antibiotic resistance in the environment

* Part III, Antimicrobial Substances and Resistance, including
antibiotics in the aquatic environment

* Part IV, Effects and Risks, including the effect of
antimicrobials used for non-human purposes on human health

Recognizing the intricate links among overlapping complex
systems, this book examines antimicrobial resistance using a
comprehensive ecosystem approach. Moreover, the book's
multidisciplinary framework applies principles of microbiology,
environmental toxicology, and chemistry to assess the human and
ecological risks associated with exposure to antibiotics or
antibiotic resistance genes that are environmental
contaminants.

Each chapter has been written by one or more leading researchers
in such fields as microbiology, environmental science, ecology, and
toxicology. Comprehensive reference lists at the end of all
chapters serve as a gateway to the primary research in the
field.

Presenting and analyzing the latest findings in a field of
growing importance to human and environmental health, this text
offers readers new insights into the role of the environment in
antimicrobial resistance development, the dissemination of
antimicrobial resistant genetic elements, and the transport of
antibiotic resistance genes and antibiotics.