Effect of Biowaste Sludge Maturation on the Diversity of Thermophilic Bacteria and Archaea in an Anaerobic Reactor

• Published in: Applied and Environmental Microbiology Vol. 75; no. 8; pp. 2566 - 2572
• Main Authors: Goberna, M, Insam, H, Franke-Whittle, I.H
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: Washington, DC American Society for Microbiology 01-04-2009; American Society for Microbiology (ASM)
• Subjects: Anaerobiosis; Archaea; Archaea - classification; Archaea - genetics; Archaea - isolation & purification; Bacteria; Bacteria - classification; Bacteria - genetics; Bacteria - isolation & purification; Biodiversity; Biological and medical sciences; Bioreactors; Bioreactors - microbiology; DNA, Archaeal - chemistry; DNA, Archaeal - genetics; DNA, Bacterial - chemistry; DNA, Bacterial - genetics; DNA, Ribosomal - chemistry; DNA, Ribosomal - genetics; Environmental Microbiology; Fatty acids; Fatty Acids, Volatile - metabolism; Fundamental and applied biological sciences. Psychology; Genes, rRNA; Hydrogen-Ion Concentration; Microbiology; Molecular Sequence Data; Phylogeny; Reactors; RNA, Ribosomal, 16S - genetics; Sequence Analysis, DNA; Sequence Homology, Nucleic Acid; Sewage - microbiology; Sludge; Ripening; Anaerobe; Archaeobacteria; Diversity; Bacteria; Thermophily; Reactor; Mud
• ISSN: 0099-2240; 1098-5336; 1098-6596
• DOI: 10.1128/aem.02260-08

Prokaryotic diversity was investigated near the inlet and outlet of a plug-flow reactor. After analyzing 800 clones, 50 bacterial and 3 archaeal phylogenetic groups were defined. Clostridia (>92%) dominated among bacteria and Methanoculleus (>90%) among archaea. Significant changes in pH and volatile fatty acids did not invoke a major shift in the phylogenetic groups. We suggest that the environmental filter imposed by the saline conditions (20 g liter⁻¹) selected a stable community of halotolerant and halophilic prokaryotes.