Assessment of Microbial Communities In Decomposition of Specified Risk Material Using a Passively Aerated Laboratory-Scale Composter

Xu, Shaofa; McAllister, Tim A.; Leonard, J.J.; Clark, O. Grant; Belosevic, Miodrag

doi:10.1080/1065657x.2010.10736964

Cited by 16 publications

(32 citation statements)

References 40 publications

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“…This slight difference likely arises from differences in the composition of the feedlot manure between the two studies. The increase in TN content observed in this study supports the hypothesis put forward by Xu et al (2007Xu et al ( , 2010 that the degradation of SRM releases a large amount of free nitrogen into compost that surround the nylon bags.…”

Section: Changes Of Physicochemical Propertiessupporting

confidence: 90%

“…Close to 50% of SRM dry matter disappeared within 15 days of composting, similar to that observed in a previous experiment in our laboratory (Xu et al 2010). Schwarzlose et al (2008) reported that insulation of composters improved heat retention and accelerated the biodegradation of poultry carcasses during a 30 day composting period.…”

Section: Biodegradation Of Srmsupporting

confidence: 84%

“…Ambient compost exhibited a typical decline in compost oxygen concentration at the start of composting, indicating oxygen was being consumed by the microbes via aerobic respiration. A phenomena that we have observed in a previous study using a similar composting system (Xu et al 2010). However, active-heating resulted in oxygen concentrations being similar to atmospheric concentrations, a result that has been confirmed by others using actively heated composter (Hogan et al 1989).…”

Section: Temperature and Oxygen Profilesmentioning

confidence: 59%

“…Upon completion of the experiment, moisture content was reduced to approximate 30%, a level that is not optimal for organic matter degradation (Ahn et al 2008). The average TC loss (2.4%) in the first composting cycle was slightly higher than the 1.3% loss observed in a previous trial using the same laboratory-scale composters (Xu et al 2010). This slight difference likely arises from differences in the composition of the feedlot manure between the two studies.…”

Section: Changes Of Physicochemical Propertiesmentioning

confidence: 96%

“…The biodegradation of SRM in compost depends on the complex microbial consortia that are naturally present in this environment (Berge et al 2009;Xu et al 2010). Although composting of cattle carcasses on-farm has been evaluated Xu et al 2009), information on the microbes participating in this process is lacking.…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Biodegradation of specified risk material and characterization of actinobacterial communities in laboratory-scale composters

Inglis

Reuter

et al. 2011

Biodegradation

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As a result of bovine spongiform encephalopathy in Canada, specific tissues at risk of harbouring prions are not allowed to enter the food chain. Composting may be a viable alternative to rendering and land filling for the disposal of specified risk material (SRM). Two types of laboratory-scale composters, actively-heated and ambient systems were constructed to assess the biodegradation of SRM over 30 days. A second heating cycle was generated by mixing the compost after 15 days. Compared to ambient composters, temperature profiles in actively-heated composters were above 50°C for 5 and 4 days longer in the first and second composting cycles, respectively. Degradation of SRM was similar between two composter types during two composting cycles, averaging 52.2% in the first cycle and 43.9% in second cycle. Denaturing gradient gel electrophoresis (DGGE) revealed that changes in the actinobacteria populations in the first composting cycle were of a temporal nature, whereas alterations in populations in the second composting cycle were more related to active heating of compost. Sequencing of the dominant DGGE bands showed the predominance of Corynebacterium, Promicromonospora, Pseudonocardia, and Thermobifida in the first composting cycle and Corynebacterium, Mycobacterium, Nocardia, Saccharomonospora, and Streptomyces in the second composting cycle. Active heating can alter the nature of actinobacteria populations in compost, but does not appear to have a major impact on the extent of degradation of SRM.

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