antibiotic-resistance
Antibiotic resistance occurs when microorganisms evolve mechanisms to survive antimicrobial treatments, reducing the effectiveness of drugs used to control infections. In plant agriculture, this is particularly significant because plant pathogens can develop resistance to the antibiotics used to manage crop diseases, potentially compromising disease control strategies and agricultural productivity. Understanding and managing antibiotic resistance in farming systems is essential for ensuring sustainable crop protection and food security.
open_in_new WikipediaPubMed · 2026-02-13
Researchers are combining microalgae with conventional wastewater treatment systems to remove antibiotics more effectively while recovering nutrients and producing usable biomass—a sustainable solution to a growing environmental and public health threat.
Conventional sludge-based treatment systems fail to completely remove antibiotics from wastewater, allowing them to persist in the environment and spread antibiotic resistance genes
Microalgae-sludge hybrid systems remove antibiotics through multiple complementary mechanisms: biosorption, bioaccumulation, biodegradation, and physicochemical processes
Integrated microalgae-sludge systems simultaneously provide co-benefits including nutrient recovery, enhanced oxygen supply, and production of valorizable biomass