An integrated approach that encompasses all ecological compartments is urgently needed to understand the emergence, maintenance, and dissemination of multidrug-resistant bacteria and antimicrobial resistance genes (ARGs) (Hernando-Amado et al., 2019). However, the role of aquatic environments in this process remains an open question for the scientific community. In light of this, we collaborated with Frontiers in Microbiology to launch a Research Topic “Antimicrobial resistance in aquatic environments” during 2020–2021. This topic aimed to deliver state-of-the-art knowledge and ideas on the role of aquatic environments in selecting, maintaining, and dispersing antimicrobial resistance (AMR) determinants. It included articles from Europe, Asia, America, and Africa that expanded our knowledge and raised new questions for the global scientific community (Calero-Cáceres et al., 2022). Due to its success, we launched a second volume of the Research Topic in May 2022. This volume received 8 manuscript submissions, all of which underwent strict peer review. Of these, 5 were accepted for publication. The Research Topics covered a range of subjects, including the evaluation of anthropogenic pollution in water bodies, bioinformatic re-analysis of whole-genome sequences of Escherichia coli harboring mobile colistin resistance, a review article on cross-selection of antibiotic resistance in aquatic environments, and a meta-analysis of the prevalence of antibiotic-resistant bacteria (ARB) in marine bivalves. These studies employed modern methodologies such as high-throughput qPCR and whole-genome sequencing.
