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<p>The goals of this integrated research, education, and extension coordinated agricultural program (CAP) are</p> <p>1) to identify critical control points for the spread of antimicrobial resistance from manure to produce and </p> <p> 2) to engage in education and extension efforts relevant to pre-harvest and post-harvest practices that may mitigate the spread of antibiotic resistance from farm to fork.</p><p> The specific objectives are to:Determine the effect of common therapeutic and subtherapeutic antibiotic use practices on excretion of antibiotics and ARGs, using dairy and beef cattle as models, in order to inform manure management strategies;</p> <p>Examine the potential for manure composting to degrade antibiotics and attenuate ARBs and ARGs, and recommend appropriate manure treatment practices;</p><p>Examine the effect of soil type on the persistence of antibiotics, ARBs, and ARGs in compost-amended soils and provide guidance to farmers on implications for field selection;</p><p>Quantify the transfer of antibiotics, ARBs, and ARGs to various produce grown in soils amended with different compost types and provide guidance to farmers on crop selection;</p><p>Determine the effect of and develop recommendations for different fresh produce post-harvest practices on survival and re-growth of ARBs and ARGs;</p><p> andDevelop and implement educational opportunities focused on mitigation of agricultural sources of antibiotic resistance for undergraduate and graduate students.</p>
<p>An integrated research, education, and extension approach will be implemented to achieve the goals and objectives of this CAP.The research effort will employ animal studies (e.g., dosing antibiotics to dairy and beef cattle as models) and both lab- and field-scale studies to evaluate the effects of different composting approaches, soil types, crop types, and post-harvest practices on the potential for antibiotic resistance to spread from farm to fork.The education effort will include lab rotations and specialized coarsework for graduate students selected as AgSOAR trainees. A comprehensive undergraduate field practicum program will also be offered to undergraduate students. Graduates and undergraduates will participate directly in the research.Extension will be integrated throughout, including students and project director/co-directors in disseminating results to producers and growers through eXtension community of practice resources, the Virginia Cooperative ExtensionExtension, a website, blog, facebook page, and webinar.</p>