Effects of veterinary antibiotics on plant-soil interaction, plant performance and plant community composition

The majority of antibiotics (ABX) used in livestock farming, households and hospitals enter the
environment, where they affect soil bacteria and the performance of plants and animals. So far, the
basis for environmental risk assessments (ERA) relies on crop species, partly because the phototoxic
ABX-effects on wild species is still insufficiently understood.
We aim to explore ABX-effects on soil processes and on the performance of wild plants from field
margins. We will determine how ABX effect the next generation of plants in the framework of
epigenetic information transfer, and how ABX effect intra- and interspecific competition in plant
communities, with a special focus on atmospheric N2-fixation by legumes.
We hypothesise that ABX affect soil enzyme activity, and thereby nutrient availability for plants, apart
from direct plant-effects by ABX-uptake. We expect ABX-effects to transmit into the next generation,
e.g. by lower root production, and that legume species are highly sensitive due to their symbiosis
with rhizobia-bacteria.
This project will contribute greatly to the accelerating debate on the effects of anthropogenic
pollutants, by in-depth research on ABX-effects on the relationships between soil processes and plant
performance. It will evaluate the consequences of ABX for future generations of plants and use upto-date epigenetic and DNA-sequencing methods. Lastly, it will conduct ERA analysis to contribute to
the development of formulating legislation