离子液体（ILs）作为工业挥发性有机溶剂的“环保”替代品，已广泛应用于化工行业。然而，关于ILs的毒性和潜在环境影响的数据很少，这对于准备将其释放到环境中是相当重要的。在该研究中，测试了IL 1-丁基-3-甲基咪唑六氟磷酸盐（[BMIm] [PF6]）在环境细菌中促进抗生素抗性基因（ARG）增殖和传播的能力。在淡水微环境中，([BMIm] [PF6])（0.5 g / L）显着增加了sulI基因的丰度（比未处理的对照组高500倍）。同时，[BMIm] [PF6]显着增加I类整合子的丰度，这在ARG传播中起关键作用。 intI和sulI基因之间呈正相关（p <0.01）表明[BMIm] [PF6] - 促进了sulI的增殖是由I类整合子介导的。测序结果表明了sulI位点位于I类整合子3'区，证实这一观点。 I类整合子在不同土着菌株产碱菌种之间的转移实验。 （SMXR）和不动杆菌属（Acinetobacter sp。）。 （StrR）来证明I类整合子的水平转移频率在IL存在下高达88倍。通过流式细胞术证实IL增加了细胞膜通透性，从而辅助I类整合子介导的sulI基因转移。这是ILs促进环境细菌中ARG 增殖并因此增加公共健康威胁的第一份报告。

Ionic liquids (ILs), as “environmentally friendly” replacements for industrial volatile organic solvents, have been widely and recently applied in the chemical industry. However, few data have been collected regarding the toxicity and potential environmental effects of ILs, which are fairly important for preparing for their potential release into the environment. In this study, the IL 1-butyl-3-methylimidazolium hexafluorophosphate ([BMIm][PF6]) was tested for its ability to promote the proliferation and dissemination of antibiotic resistance genes (ARGs) in environmental bacteria. In freshwater microcosms, [BMIm][PF6] (0.5 g/L) significantly enhanced the abundance of the sulI gene (500-fold greater than in untreated controls). Meanwhile, [BMIm][PF6] significantly increased the abundance of class I integrons, which play a key role in ARG dissemination. A positive correlation (p< 0.01) between the intI and sulI genes suggested that [BMIm][PF6]-facilitated sulI propagation was mediated by class I integrons. This idea was supported by sequencing, which showed the sulI locus in the 3′ region of class I integrons. Class I integron transfer experiments between different indigenous strains of Alcaligenes sp. (SMXR) and Acinetobacter sp. (StrR) were conducted to show that the horizontal transfer frequency of class I integrons was up to 88-fold higher in the presence of an IL. An IL increased cell membrane permeability as evidenced by flow cytometry, thereby assistingsulI gene transfer mediated by class I integrons. This is the first report that ILs facilitate the proliferation of ARGs in environmental bacteria and thus increase risks to public health.

https://pubs.acs.org/doi/abs/10.1021/ez500103v