Article

The plastisphere can protect Salmonella Typhimurium from UV stress under simulated environmental conditions

Details

Citation

Ormsby MJ, Woodford L, White HL, Fellows R & Quilliam RS (2024) The plastisphere can protect Salmonella Typhimurium from UV stress under simulated environmental conditions. Environmental Pollution, 358, Art. No.: 124464. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.envpol.2024.124464

Abstract
Plastic waste is found with increasing frequency in the environment, in low- and middle-income countries. Plastic pollution has increased concurrently with both economic development and rapid urbanisation, amplifying the effects of inadequate waste management. Distinct microbial communities can quickly colonise plastic surfaces in what is collectively known as the ‘plastisphere’. The plastisphere can act as a reservoir for human pathogenic bacteria, including Salmonella enterica sp. (such as S. Typhimurium), which can persist for long periods, retain pathogenicity, and pose an increased public health risk. Through employing a novel mesocosm setup, we have shown here that the plastisphere provides enhanced protection against environmental pressures such as ultraviolet (UV) radiation and allows S. Typhimurium to persist at concentrations (>1 × 103 CFU/ml) capable of causing human infection, for up to 28 days. Additionally, using a Galleria Mellonella model of infection, S. Typhimurium exhibits greater pathogenicity following recovery from the UV-exposed plastisphere, suggesting that the plastisphere may select for more virulent variants. This study demonstrates the protection afforded by the plastisphere and provides further evidence of environmental plastic waste acting as a reservoir for dangerous clinical pathogens. Quantifying the role of plastic pollution in facilitating the survival, persistence, and dissemination of human pathogens is critical for a more holistic understanding of the potential public health risks associated with plastic waste.

Keywords
Plastisphere; Human pathogens; Plastic pollution; Biofilm; Public health

Journal
Environmental Pollution: Volume 358

StatusPublished
FundersNERC Natural Environment Research Council and NERC Natural Environment Research Council
Publication date31/10/2024
Publication date online31/07/2024
Date accepted by journal26/06/2024
URLhttp://hdl.handle.net/1893/36222
PublisherElsevier BV
ISSN0269-7491
eISSN 1873-6424

People (3)

Miss Rosie Fellows

Miss Rosie Fellows

Research Assistant, Biological and Environmental Sciences

Professor Richard Quilliam

Professor Richard Quilliam

Professor, Biological and Environmental Sciences

Dr Luke Woodford

Dr Luke Woodford

Postdoctoral Research Fellow, Biological and Environmental Sciences

Projects (2)