Pulse Brain · Growing Health Evidence Index
Peer-reviewed

Soil microbial and plant responses to increasing antibiotic concentration: a case study of five antibiotics

Sarah van den Broek, Inna Nybom, Rafaela Feola Conz, Yifei Sun, Thomas D. Bucheli, Sebastian Doetterl, Martin Hartmann, Gina Garland

Applied and Environmental Microbiology · 2026

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Summary

and significantly lowered radish biomass and nitrogen uptake, while spinach biomass and nitrogen uptake were unaffected. In summary, our study showed that antibiotic exposure significantly changed prokaryotic community diversity, while fungi remained largely unaffected. The reduction of plant growth-promoting bacteria may have a significant impact on soil nutrient cycling and crop productivity, but more research is needed to understand the long-term impact of these co-applied antibiotics on food production. Additionally, more studies are needed to understand the effect of antibiotics on realistic, field-scale conditions to fully understand the impact on environmental and human health. IMPORTANCE: Agricultural soils are frequently contaminated with complex mixtures of antibiotics from vario

Subject
Pesticides, contaminants & food safety
Source type
Peer-reviewed study
System type
Other
DOI
10.1128/aem.01581-25
Catalogue ID
SNmp2b1ums-fcl5q2
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