Common waterborne bacterium may fuel resistance to last-resort antibiotics

A recent study highlighted in Nature shows that a common waterborne bacterium, Aeromonas, widely present in rivers, ponds, and wastewater—particularly in South Asia—harbours extensive resistance to multiple antibiotics, including last-resort treatments. This finding underscores that aquatic environments can act as major reservoirs of antimicrobial resistance (AMR), with the potential to transfer resistant genes to pathogens that infect humans and animals, thereby posing a significant and often underrecognized public health risk.