Widespread Agricultural Use of Glyphosate Found to Select for Hospital Superbugs in Soils and Waterways

Frontiers study shows glyphosate selects for multidrug-resistant bacteria in soil, creating a cycle of antibiotic resistance that reaches hospitals via water.

By: AXL Media

Published: Mar 24, 2026, 9:18 AM EDT

Source: Information for this report was sourced from Frontiers

The Unintended Environmental Selection of Superbugs

Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) remains one of the most significant threats to global health, contributing to over 1.1 million deaths annually. While the evolution of "superbugs" is typically attributed to the overuse of antibiotics in clinical settings, new research suggests that common agricultural chemicals may be playing a primary role. A study led by Dr. Daniela Centrón at the Institute of Medical Microbiology and Parasitology has found that glyphosate, the world's most widely used weedkiller, effectively selects for bacteria that are also resistant to multiple classes of antibiotics. This indicates that agricultural soils are serving as an unexpected breeding ground for the very pathogens that haunt modern hospitals.

Comparing Clinical Strains and Environmental Samples

To investigate this link, researchers analyzed 102 bacterial strains collected from diverse environments, including hospital wards, agricultural soils, and the nature reserves of the Paraná delta in Argentina. The team tested these strains against 16 common antibiotics and various concentrations of glyphosate-based herbicides. The results were concerning: nearly 74% of the hospital-derived strains were resistant to carbapenems—antibiotics typically used as a treatment of last resort. Crucially, every single hospital strain also demonstrated high resistance to glyphosate, revealing a symmetrical survival strategy between clinical and environmental stressors.

The Role of the Water Cycle in Pathogen Transmission

The study highlights a dangerous feedback loop facilitated by the movement of water between urban and rural areas. Bacteria carrying antibiotic resistance genes can spread from hospitals into the environment through untreated wastewater. Once these bacteria reach agricultural zones, the presence of glyphosate ensures their survival by killing off susceptible, non-resistant species. Conversely, bacteria that evolve glyphosate resistance in the soil can eventually find their way back into the human population. Coauthor Dr. Jochen A. Müller emphasizes that the water cycle acts as the primary highway for this bidirectional transmission, allowing resistant genes to "breed" across seemingly isolated niches.