The intensive use of antibiotics in different fields influenced the widespread of resistance in areas as diverse as hospitals, cattle stool, wastewater treatment plants, and drinking water.  Although primarily the spread of antibiotic resistance is associated with hospitals, antibiotic resistance genes (ARG) have been found not only in soil, freshwater, sediments, cattle stool, human gut, wastewater treatment plants, but also in the outdoor and indoor dust. However the detected ARG in dust are mobile or present in the viable bacteria, need to be explored. It is found that dust within modern buildings is a reservoir of ARGs and a possible vector for bidirectional transfer of ARGs between the human and the outdoor environment. The impact of building design and management like selection of cleaning products, building construction materials, home furniture and personal daily care products on indoor dust microbial communities and the spread of ARGs, and their effect on human health should be considered.

To read the entire article, please visit the website of PLOS Pathogens [Link]