Plants take up essential nutrients from the soil through their roots, and in the process absorb substances released by soil microorganisms such as antibiotics. Plants appear to have developed resistance mechanisms. One example of this phenomenon is observed in Arabidopsis thaliana plants, which possess the Atwbc19 gene that confers resistance to the antibiotic kanamycin. Atwbc19 mutants are very sensitive to kanamycin and their Zn uptake is compromised under normal conditions. In addition, Fe uptake in control plants declines when they are exposed to kanamycin. These preliminary findings suggested a link between antibiotics and metal uptake. We propose and experimentally validate a model that explains the connection between metal uptake and antibiotic resistance. According to our model, the modified metal homeostasis may be adaptive in the control plants that are resistant, whereas mutants may fail to make those adjustments and therefore become vulnerable to kanamycin. Data was collected by plating Atwbc19 mutant as well as control plants in media containing half iron for a period of seven, eleven and thirteen days. Plants were harvested, dried and sent for metal analysis. We observed an overall reduced uptake of iron both in the presence and absence of kanamycin which supported our model.
