IDEAS home Printed from https://ideas.repec.org/a/gam/jagris/v15y2025i17p1833-d1736680.html
   My bibliography  Save this article

Synteny Patterns of Class 1 Integrons Reflect Microbial Adaptation and Soil Health in Agroecosystems

Author

Listed:
  • Andrea Visca

    (Department for Sustainability, ENEA, Italian National Agency for New Technologies, Energy and Sustainable Economic Development, Casaccia Research Center, Via Anguillarese 301, 00123 Rome, Italy)

  • Manuela Costanzo

    (Department for Sustainability, ENEA, Italian National Agency for New Technologies, Energy and Sustainable Economic Development, Casaccia Research Center, Via Anguillarese 301, 00123 Rome, Italy)

  • Luciana Di Gregorio

    (Department for Sustainability, ENEA, Italian National Agency for New Technologies, Energy and Sustainable Economic Development, Casaccia Research Center, Via Anguillarese 301, 00123 Rome, Italy)

  • Lorenzo Nolfi

    (Department for Sustainability, ENEA, Italian National Agency for New Technologies, Energy and Sustainable Economic Development, Casaccia Research Center, Via Anguillarese 301, 00123 Rome, Italy
    Department of Agriculture and Forest Sciences, University of Tuscia, 01100 Viterbo, Italy)

  • Roberta Bernini

    (Department of Agriculture and Forest Sciences, University of Tuscia, 01100 Viterbo, Italy)

  • Annamaria Bevivino

    (Department for Sustainability, ENEA, Italian National Agency for New Technologies, Energy and Sustainable Economic Development, Casaccia Research Center, Via Anguillarese 301, 00123 Rome, Italy)

Abstract

Mobile genetic elements such as integrons are key drivers of microbial evolution, enabling rapid adaptation to environmental pressures through the acquisition and rearrangement of gene cassettes. In this study, we explored the structural diversity and synteny of class 1 integrons ( intI1 ) across a set of agroecosystem-related environments, including digestate, compost, and rhizosphere soils from wheat crops ( Triticum durum and T. aestivum ). Our results reveal distinct gene cassette architectures shaped by the origin of the samples: digestate harbored the most diverse and complex arrays, while compost displayed streamlined structures. Rhizosphere soils exhibited intermediate configurations, reflecting a dynamic balance between environmental exposure and host influence. Genes associated with resistance to antibiotics and heavy metals, such as qacEΔ1 and ebrA , were differentially distributed, suggesting site-specific selective pressures. The observed patterns of cassette organization and diversity underscore the role of integron synteny as a molecular fingerprint of microbial adaptation. These findings position class 1 integrons as promising bioindicators of soil health and functional resilience, supporting a One Health approach to sustainable agriculture and microbial risk monitoring.

Suggested Citation

  • Andrea Visca & Manuela Costanzo & Luciana Di Gregorio & Lorenzo Nolfi & Roberta Bernini & Annamaria Bevivino, 2025. "Synteny Patterns of Class 1 Integrons Reflect Microbial Adaptation and Soil Health in Agroecosystems," Agriculture, MDPI, vol. 15(17), pages 1-14, August.
    • Handle: RePEc:gam:jagris:v:15:y:2025:i:17:p:1833-:d:1736680
    as

    Download full text from publisher

    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/2077-0472/15/17/1833/pdf
    Download Restriction: no
    File URL: https://www.mdpi.com/2077-0472/15/17/1833/
    Download Restriction: no
    ---><---

    References listed on IDEAS

    as
    1. Izabela Wolak & Sylwia Bajkacz & Monika Harnisz & Klaudia Stando & Magdalena Męcik & Ewa Korzeniewska, 2023. "Digestate from Agricultural Biogas Plants as a Reservoir of Antimicrobials and Antibiotic Resistance Genes—Implications for the Environment," IJERPH, MDPI, vol. 20(3), pages 1-19, February.
    2. Ionela Cătălina Vasilachi & Vasile Stoleru & Maria Gavrilescu, 2023. "Analysis of Heavy Metal Impacts on Cereal Crop Growth and Development in Contaminated Soils," Agriculture, MDPI, vol. 13(10), pages 1-50, October.
    Full references (including those not matched with items on IDEAS)

    Most related items

    These are the items that most often cite the same works as this one and are cited by the same works as this one.
    1. Małgorzata Czatzkowska & Damian Rolbiecki & Ewa Korzeniewska & Monika Harnisz, 2025. "Heavy Metal and Antimicrobial Residue Levels in Various Types of Digestate from Biogas Plants—A Review," Sustainability, MDPI, vol. 17(2), pages 1-26, January.

    More about this item

    Keywords

    ;
    ;
    ;
    ;
    ;

    JEL classification:

    Statistics

    Access and download statistics

    Corrections

    All material on this site has been provided by the respective publishers and authors. You can help correct errors and omissions. When requesting a correction, please mention this item's handle: RePEc:gam:jagris:v:15:y:2025:i:17:p:1833-:d:1736680. See general information about how to correct material in RePEc.

    If you have authored this item and are not yet registered with RePEc, we encourage you to do it here. This allows to link your profile to this item. It also allows you to accept potential citations to this item that we are uncertain about.

    If CitEc recognized a bibliographic reference but did not link an item in RePEc to it, you can help with this form .

    If you know of missing items citing this one, you can help us creating those links by adding the relevant references in the same way as above, for each refering item. If you are a registered author of this item, you may also want to check the "citations" tab in your RePEc Author Service profile, as there may be some citations waiting for confirmation.

    For technical questions regarding this item, or to correct its authors, title, abstract, bibliographic or download information, contact: MDPI Indexing Manager (email available below). General contact details of provider: https://www.mdpi.com .

    Please note that corrections may take a couple of weeks to filter through the various RePEc services.

    IDEAS is a RePEc service. RePEc uses bibliographic data supplied by the respective publishers.