The One Health resistome: Integrating environmental, microbial, and human antimicrobial resistance surveillance and risk analysis in the digital age
- 1Department of Life Sciences, Imperial College London, London SW7 2AZ, United Kingdom. Electronic address: [email protected]
- 2Department of Microbiology, West Bengal State University, Kolkata 700126, India
- 3Department of Life Sciences, Imperial College London, London SW7 2AZ, United Kingdom
Abstract
Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) and antibiotic resistance (ABR) represent one of the most pressing global health threats, driven by the complex interplay between human, animal, and environmental factors. The One Health resistome framework recognises that resistance genes circulate continuously across clinical, agricultural, and environmental compartments through horizontal gene transfer, co-selection mechanisms, and anthropogenic contamination. This comprehensive review synthesises current evidence on integrated AMR surveillance, examining how digital technologies are transforming our capacity to monitor, predict, and respond to resistance emergence. Key advances include whole-genome sequencing enabling high-resolution pathogen tracking, metagenomics revealing environmental resistome diversity, machine learning algorithms predicting resistance phenotypes with > 85% accuracy, and point-of-care diagnostics extending sophisticated testing to resource-limited settings. Geographic information systems facilitate spatial hotspot identification, while wastewater-based surveillance provides early warning capabilities, detecting resistance genes before clinical manifestation. Despite technological progress, substantial challenges persist: fragmented data streams across sectors, lack of standardised environmental monitoring methods, limited laboratory capacity in low- and middle-income countries, and chronic underfunding. Emerging technologies, portable nanopore sequencing, CRISPR-based diagnostics, artificial intelligence, and blockchain-enabled data governance promise to address these gaps. Realising comprehensive One Health resistome surveillance requires sustained investment in interoperable digital infrastructure, international standardisation, capacity building, and political commitment to cross-sectoral coordination, prioritising equitable global implementation.
Related
- Environmental surveillance for Sabin polioviruses, Salmonella, and antimicrobial resistance genes in an urban setting in southern India
- Evaluating surface water for genomic surveillance of community-linked antimicrobial resistance in ESBL-producing Klebsiella pneumoniae
- Antimicrobial resistance profiles and antibiotic resistance gene detection in environmental isolates from urban streams in Ilorin, Nigeria: a One Health cross-sectional assessment
- Environmental antimicrobial resistance and human infectious disease outcomes: a global one health systematic review and meta-analysis of observational studies.
- Integrated cross-sectoral surveillance of antimicrobial resistance genotypes and phenotypes across disparate reservoirs
BibTeX
@article{majumdar2026health,
title = {{The One Health resistome: Integrating environmental, microbial, and human antimicrobial resistance surveillance and risk analysis in the digital age}},
author = {Arnab Majumdar and Dhritidipa Bagchi and Ioly Kotta‐Loizou and Martin Buck},
journal = {Journal of Hazardous Materials},
year = {2026},
month = may,
doi = {10.1016/j.jhazmat.2026.142431},
url = {https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jhazmat.2026.142431},
note = {CC BY},
}
RIS
TY - JOUR
TI - The One Health resistome: Integrating environmental, microbial, and human antimicrobial resistance surveillance and risk analysis in the digital age
AU - Arnab Majumdar
AU - Dhritidipa Bagchi
AU - Ioly Kotta‐Loizou
AU - Martin Buck
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/05/19
JO - Journal of Hazardous Materials
DO - 10.1016/j.jhazmat.2026.142431
UR - https://doi.org/10.1016/j.jhazmat.2026.142431
AB - Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) and antibiotic resistance (ABR) represent one of the most pressing global health threats, driven by the complex interplay between human, animal, and environmental factors. The One Health resistome framework recognises that resistance genes circulate continuously across clinical, agricultural, and environmental compartments through horizontal gene transfer, co-selection mechanisms, and anthropogenic contamination. This comprehensive review synthesises current evidence on integrated AMR surveillance, examining how digital technologies are transforming our capacity to monitor, predict, and respond to resistance emergence. Key advances include whole-genome sequencing enabling high-resolution pathogen tracking, metagenomics revealing environmental resistome diversity, machine learning algorithms predicting resistance phenotypes with > 85% accuracy, and point-of-care diagnostics extending sophisticated testing to resource-limited settings. Geographic information systems facilitate spatial hotspot identification, while wastewater-based surveillance provides early warning capabilities, detecting resistance genes before clinical manifestation. Despite technological progress, substantial challenges persist: fragmented data streams across sectors, lack of standardised environmental monitoring methods, limited laboratory capacity in low- and middle-income countries, and chronic underfunding. Emerging technologies, portable nanopore sequencing, CRISPR-based diagnostics, artificial intelligence, and blockchain-enabled data governance promise to address these gaps. Realising comprehensive One Health resistome surveillance requires sustained investment in interoperable digital infrastructure, international standardisation, capacity building, and political commitment to cross-sectoral coordination, prioritising equitable global implementation.
SN - 0304-3894
SN - 1873-3336
ER -