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Among three of India’s most isolated tribal communities in South India, the battle against antimicrobial resistance (AMR) may begin at the local water source, according to the findings of a joint study by researchers from the Anthropological Survey of India and the University of Hyderabad (UoH). The findings suggest that the source of unprotected drinking water acts as a key ecological driver of AMR in the gut. Antimicrobial resistance (AMR) is one of the most critical public health challenges threatening the efficacy of antibiotics, antivirals, antifungals, and antiparasitic agents that form the foundation of modern medicine. Researchers from the Anthropological Survey of India - Sahid Afrid Mollick, Gin Khan Khual, and Pulamaghatta N Venugopal in collaboration with the Anwesh Maile, Hampapathalu Adimurthy Nagarajaram from UoH used shotgun metagenomic sequencing to profile the gut microbiomes of three Particularly Vulnerable Tribal Groups (PVTGs) in South India. The team studied 103 healthy adults from the Irula, Jenu Kuruba, and Kurumba communities across Tamil Nadu, Karnataka, and Kerala. Participants provided faecal samples and socio-demographic information, including details about water source (stream vs. tubewell) and residential context (rural vs urban). “This integration of lifestyle data with metagenomic analysis allowed the researchers to link environmental exposure with variations in gut resistome composition,’’ a release said. By sequencing the entire microbial DNA from stool samples, the study identified and quantified antimicrobial resistance genes (ARGs), providing new insights into how environmental and lifestyle factors shape the spread of resistance in vulnerable human populations, according to a release. Published on October 28, 2025
