Disinfectants and Antimicrobial Resistance in Pathogenic Bacteria: Co-selection, Dissemination, and Public Health Implications

Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) in pathogenic bacteria is a major global public health threat. While the inappropriate use of antibiotics is widely recognized as a key driver of AMR development in bacterial pathogens, less attention has been given to the role of other antimicrobial compounds, such as disinfectants, in inducing AMR. Disinfectants comprise a wide range of chemical agents, including quaternary ammonium compounds, benzalkonium chloride, aldehydes, chlorine and chlorine-based derivatives, organic acids, hydrogen peroxide, bisphenols, alcohols, isopropyl alcohol, and cresols. These compounds are used every day by billions of people for infection prevention and microbial control in diverse settings, including food production, households, and healthcare. Consequently, disinfectants exert much stronger selective pressure than antimicrobials that are used less frequently. Mechanisms of disinfectant resistance are similar to those involved in antibiotic resistance and include selective pressure, vertical evolution, and horizontal gene transfer between resistant and susceptible bacteria. Several mechanisms contribute to this process, including efflux pump activation, enzymatic inactivation, and target site modification, alterations in membrane permeability, and biofilm formation. Disinfectant-driven co-selection may further exacerbate AMR, potentially leading to treatment failure and increased healthcare costs. Environmental dissemination of disinfectant resistance and AMR also amplifies the problem, making it a significant One Health concern with broad public health implications. Mechanistically, co-selection occurs when resistance genes for antibiotics and disinfectants are co-located within the same bacterial cell or mobile genetic element (co-resistance), or when a single resistance mechanism, such as efflux pump overexpression, confers resistance to both antibiotics and disinfectants (cross-resistance). However, the precise mechanisms of co-selection and the associated genetic factors remain poorly understood.There are currently contradictory findings and significant knowledge gaps regarding the relationship between disinfectant resistance and AMR. This research topic aims to address these gaps through systematic studies employing cutting-edge technologies, including whole-genome sequencing and transcriptomic analyses. The topic is particularly timely for advancing our understanding of the molecular mechanisms underlying co-selection between disinfectants and antibiotics and for developing strategies to control the spread of AMR. In addition, there is an urgent need for robust surveillance systems to monitor the usage of disinfectants as well as the emergence and spread of AMR.This Research Topic will focus on various aspects of disinfectant resistance and antimicrobial resistance using advanced methodologies ranging from surveillance studies to functional genomics. Sub-topics of interest include, but are not limited to:• Assessing correlations between disinfectant resistance and AMR in various pathogenic bacteria using phenotypic and genotypic methods. • One Health studies using molecular approaches to examine the connections between disinfectant resistance and AMR across different settings. • Genomic and transcriptomic studies identifying co-selection mechanisms linking disinfectant resistance and AMR. • Identification of mobile genetic elements (MGEs), such as plasmids, integrons, integrative and conjugative elements (ICEs), and transposons, associated with disinfectant resistance and AMR in pathogenic bacteria. • Identification of specific genes involved in disinfectant resistance and characterization of their roles in dissemination of antibiotic resistance genes (ARGs). • Investigation of sub-inhibitory concentrations of disinfectants in promoting biofilm formation, and biofilm-specific resistance mechanisms.• Assessment of the impact of different disinfectants on the horizontal transfer of ARGs and MGEs, as well as the underlying molecular mechanisms. In this collection we welcome the following article types: FAIR² DATA Direct Submission, FAIR² Data, Hypothesis and Theory, Methods, Mini Review, Opinion, Original Research, Perspective, Review, Systematic Review, Technology and Code. Topic editors: Bijay Khajanchi, Debabrata Biswas, Steven L Foley, Md Latiful Bari Source: https://www.frontiersin.org/research-topics/81493/disinfectants-and-antimicrobial-resistance-in-pathogenic-bacteria-co-selection-dissemination-and-public-health-implications