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Antibiotic resistance gene analyses in microbial communities: challenges and opportunities
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  • Published: 04 April 2026

Antibiotic resistance gene analyses in microbial communities: challenges and opportunities

  • D. G. Joakim Larsson  ORCID: orcid.org/0000-0002-5496-03281,2,
  • Carl-Fredrik Flach  ORCID: orcid.org/0000-0002-4101-50951,2 &
  • Erik Kristiansson  ORCID: orcid.org/0000-0002-8609-24142,3 

Nature Communications , Article number:  (2026) Cite this article

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We are providing an unedited version of this manuscript to give early access to its findings. Before final publication, the manuscript will undergo further editing. Please note there may be errors present which affect the content, and all legal disclaimers apply.

Subjects

  • Antimicrobial resistance
  • Bacterial infection
  • Metagenomics

Culture-independent antibiotic resistance gene analyses enable broad explorations of microbial communities but often fail to link such genes to bacterial hosts and genetic contexts. This makes assessing prevalence of resistant pathogens and likelihood of further transmission or resistance evolution uncertain.

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Author information

Authors and Affiliations

  1. Department of Infectious Diseases, Institute of Biomedicine, University of Gothenburg, Gothenburg, Sweden

    D. G. Joakim Larsson & Carl-Fredrik Flach

  2. Centre for Antibiotic Resistance Research in Gothenburg (CARe), University of Gothenburg, Gothenburg, Sweden

    D. G. Joakim Larsson, Carl-Fredrik Flach & Erik Kristiansson

  3. Department of Mathematical Sciences, Chalmers University of Technology and University of Gothenburg, Gothenburg, Sweden

    Erik Kristiansson

Authors
  1. D. G. Joakim Larsson
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  2. Carl-Fredrik Flach
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  3. Erik Kristiansson
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Contributions

D.G.J.L., C.F.F. and E.K. contributed to the disposition and content the article. D.G.J.L. drafted the manuscript and E.K., C.F.F. and D.G.J.L. worked together on revising and finalising the text.

Corresponding author

Correspondence to D. G. Joakim Larsson.

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Competing interests

The authors declare no competing interests.

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Nature Communications and the authors thank A. Murat Eren and the other anonymous reviewer(s) for their contribution to the peer review of this work.

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Cite this article

Larsson, D.G.J., Flach, CF. & Kristiansson, E. Antibiotic resistance gene analyses in microbial communities: challenges and opportunities. Nat Commun (2026). https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-026-71462-4

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  • Received: 03 July 2025

  • Accepted: 16 March 2026

  • Published: 04 April 2026

  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-026-71462-4

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