PARIS, Nov 1, 2023 (BSS/AFP) - Plastic litter in rivers might be allowingdangerous pathogens to hitch-hike downstream, a new study published Wednesdayfound. In 2019, infectionsrelated to antibiotic resistance are estimated to have killed 2.7 millionpeople worldwide. P.aeruginosa, which causes infections in hospital patients, was found to benearly three times more abundant on "weathered plastic" that the researchersmanipulated to resemble the way plastic breaks down in nature, when comparedto the wood. That weathered plastic also showed a greater abundance of the genesresponsible for antibiotic resistance. Rivers are the main way plastic enters the world's oceans, channellinganywhere between 3.5 thousand tonnes to 2.41 million tonnes of the manmadematerial to the sea annually.

Source: Bangladesh Sangbad Sangstha November 01, 2023 16:54 UTC