The Natural History of Integrons

Integrons were first identified because of their central role in assembling and disseminating antibiotic resistance genes in commensal and pathogenic bacteria. However, these clinically relevant integrons represent only a small proportion of integron diversity. Integrons are now known to be ancient...

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Autores principales:	Timothy M. Ghaly, Michael R. Gillings, Anahit Penesyan, Qin Qi, Vaheesan Rajabal, Sasha G. Tetu
Formato:	article
Lenguaje:	EN
Publicado:	MDPI AG 2021
Materias:	evolution metagenome antibiotic resistance lateral gene transfer Anthropocene resistome Biology (General) QH301-705.5
Acceso en línea:	https://doaj.org/article/bd705d6a8a6042efbcb57dc8268fe869
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spelling	oai:doaj.org-article:bd705d6a8a6042efbcb57dc8268fe8692021-11-25T18:24:17ZThe Natural History of Integrons10.3390/microorganisms91122122076-2607https://doaj.org/article/bd705d6a8a6042efbcb57dc8268fe8692021-10-01T00:00:00Zhttps://www.mdpi.com/2076-2607/9/11/2212https://doaj.org/toc/2076-2607Integrons were first identified because of their central role in assembling and disseminating antibiotic resistance genes in commensal and pathogenic bacteria. However, these clinically relevant integrons represent only a small proportion of integron diversity. Integrons are now known to be ancient genetic elements that are hotspots for genomic diversity, helping to generate adaptive phenotypes. This perspective examines the diversity, functions, and activities of integrons within both natural and clinical environments. We show how the fundamental properties of integrons exquisitely pre-adapted them to respond to the selection pressures imposed by the human use of antimicrobial compounds. We then follow the extraordinary increase in abundance of one class of integrons (class 1) that has resulted from its acquisition by multiple mobile genetic elements, and subsequent colonisation of diverse bacterial species, and a wide range of animal hosts. Consequently, this class of integrons has become a significant pollutant in its own right, to the extent that it can now be detected in most ecosystems. As human activities continue to drive environmental instability, integrons will likely continue to play key roles in bacterial adaptation in both natural and clinical settings. Understanding the ecological and evolutionary dynamics of integrons can help us predict and shape these outcomes that have direct relevance to human and ecosystem health.Timothy M. GhalyMichael R. GillingsAnahit PenesyanQin QiVaheesan RajabalSasha G. TetuMDPI AGarticleevolutionmetagenomeantibiotic resistancelateral gene transferAnthropoceneresistomeBiology (General)QH301-705.5ENMicroorganisms, Vol 9, Iss 2212, p 2212 (2021)
institution	DOAJ
collection	DOAJ
language	EN
topic	evolution metagenome antibiotic resistance lateral gene transfer Anthropocene resistome Biology (General) QH301-705.5
spellingShingle	evolution metagenome antibiotic resistance lateral gene transfer Anthropocene resistome Biology (General) QH301-705.5 Timothy M. Ghaly Michael R. Gillings Anahit Penesyan Qin Qi Vaheesan Rajabal Sasha G. Tetu The Natural History of Integrons
description	Integrons were first identified because of their central role in assembling and disseminating antibiotic resistance genes in commensal and pathogenic bacteria. However, these clinically relevant integrons represent only a small proportion of integron diversity. Integrons are now known to be ancient genetic elements that are hotspots for genomic diversity, helping to generate adaptive phenotypes. This perspective examines the diversity, functions, and activities of integrons within both natural and clinical environments. We show how the fundamental properties of integrons exquisitely pre-adapted them to respond to the selection pressures imposed by the human use of antimicrobial compounds. We then follow the extraordinary increase in abundance of one class of integrons (class 1) that has resulted from its acquisition by multiple mobile genetic elements, and subsequent colonisation of diverse bacterial species, and a wide range of animal hosts. Consequently, this class of integrons has become a significant pollutant in its own right, to the extent that it can now be detected in most ecosystems. As human activities continue to drive environmental instability, integrons will likely continue to play key roles in bacterial adaptation in both natural and clinical settings. Understanding the ecological and evolutionary dynamics of integrons can help us predict and shape these outcomes that have direct relevance to human and ecosystem health.
format	article
author	Timothy M. Ghaly Michael R. Gillings Anahit Penesyan Qin Qi Vaheesan Rajabal Sasha G. Tetu
author_facet	Timothy M. Ghaly Michael R. Gillings Anahit Penesyan Qin Qi Vaheesan Rajabal Sasha G. Tetu
author_sort	Timothy M. Ghaly
title	The Natural History of Integrons
title_short	The Natural History of Integrons
title_full	The Natural History of Integrons
title_fullStr	The Natural History of Integrons
title_full_unstemmed	The Natural History of Integrons
title_sort	natural history of integrons
publisher	MDPI AG
publishDate	2021
url	https://doaj.org/article/bd705d6a8a6042efbcb57dc8268fe869
work_keys_str_mv	AT timothymghaly thenaturalhistoryofintegrons AT michaelrgillings thenaturalhistoryofintegrons AT anahitpenesyan thenaturalhistoryofintegrons AT qinqi thenaturalhistoryofintegrons AT vaheesanrajabal thenaturalhistoryofintegrons AT sashagtetu thenaturalhistoryofintegrons AT timothymghaly naturalhistoryofintegrons AT michaelrgillings naturalhistoryofintegrons AT anahitpenesyan naturalhistoryofintegrons AT qinqi naturalhistoryofintegrons AT vaheesanrajabal naturalhistoryofintegrons AT sashagtetu naturalhistoryofintegrons
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The Natural History of Integrons

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