Diversity Profile of Microbes Associated with Anaerobic Sulfur Oxidation in an Upflow Anaerobic Sludge Blanket Reactor Treating Municipal Sewage

Abstract

We herein analyzed the diversity of microbes involved in anaerobic sulfur oxidation in an upflow anaerobic sludge blanket (UASB) reactor used for treating municipal sewage under low-temperature conditions. Anaerobic sulfur oxidation occurred in the absence of oxygen, with nitrite and nitrate as electron acceptors; however, reactor performance parameters demonstrated that anaerobic conditions were maintained. In order to gain insights into the underlying basis of anaerobic sulfur oxidation, the microbial diversity that exists in the UASB sludge was analyzed comprehensively to determine their identities and contribution to sulfur oxidation. Sludge samples were collected from the UASB reactor over a period of 2 years and used for bacterial 16S rRNA gene-based terminal restriction fragment length polymorphism (T-RFLP) and next-generation sequencing analyses. T-RFLP and sequencing results both showed that microbial community patterns changed markedly from day 537 onwards. Bacteria belonging to the genus Desulforhabdus within the phylum Proteobacteria and uncultured bacteria within the phylum Fusobacteria were the main groups observed during the period of anaerobic sulfur oxidation. Their abundance correlated with temperature, suggesting that these bacterial groups played roles in anaerobic sulfur oxidation in UASB reactors.

Sewage Sludge Microbial Structures and Relations to Their Sources, Treatments, and Chemical Attributes

“…It could be ratified by relative high abundance of Desulfobulbus and presence of Desulfovibrio as well as Desulfococcus , Desulforhabdus , and Desulfovirga in the samples ( Figure 1C ). Desulfovibrio , Desulforhabdus , and Smithella were very efficient in removing S from anaerobically treated sludges ( Aida et al, 2015 ). SS10 was the only sample having aerobic treatment and showed the highest S concentration ( Table 1 ).…”

“…High abundance of Clostridium in domestic sludges was expected since it represents 10–40 % of human intestinal microbiota ( Manson et al, 2008 ; Lopetuso et al, 2013 ). Clostridium was usually the most abundant genera in activated sludges, whereas Desulfobulbus and Dechloromonas were often associated with nutrients (such as N and S) removal from WWTPs ( Aida et al, 2015 ).…”

Co‐occurrence network analysis reveals thermodynamics‐driven microbial interactions in methanogenic bioreactors

“…This wastewater contains varying concentrations of aromatic compounds (Roffia et al, 1984;Kleerebezem et al, 1999;Razo-Flores et al, 2006;Tomás et al, 2013); thus, necessitating effective treatment. Anaerobic biological processes treating PTA process wastewater (Guyot et al, 1990;Macarie, 2000;Stergar et al, 2003;Van Lier et al, 2008;Kim et al, 2012;Narihiro et al, 2015a) promote a microbial reaction where syntrophic substrate-oxidizing bacteria (syntrophs) forge a mutually supportive partnership with methanogenic archaea (methanogens) to accomplish oxidation of aromatic compounds (Qiu et al, 2006;McInerney et al, 2007;Qiu et al, 2008;Schink and Stams, 2013;Nobu et al, 2014;Aida et al, 2015;Nobu et al, 2015a, b). Without this partnership, degradation rapidly becomes endergonic as byproducts accumulate.…”

Topic of Influence, Methane and Microbes

“…Anaerobic digestion (AD) is a representative technology that makes use of the symbiotic relationships between anaerobic microorganisms ( 21 , 30 , 39 , 43 ). AD technology is widely used in the treatment of wastewater and has already been extensively examined ( 1 , 11 , 29 , 46 ). In Microbes and Environments , a study was published by Narihiro and colleagues on comparative genomics of three strains belonging to the family Syntrophomonadaceae , the members of which are frequently observed in AD systems.…”