1. Branchial nitrogen cycle symbionts can remove ammonia in fish gills
- Author
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Arslan Arshad, Mike S. M. Jetten, Huub J. M. Op den Camp, Maartje A. H. J. van Kessel, Stephanie C.M. van Dalen, Sjoerd E. Wendelaar Bonga, Peter H.M. Klaren, Tom Spanings, Rob Mesman, Juriaan R. Metz, Gert Flik, and Laura van Niftrik
- Subjects
0301 basic medicine ,Gill ,Animal Ecology and Physiology ,Microorganism ,030106 microbiology ,Fish species ,Biology ,03 medical and health sciences ,Ammonia ,chemistry.chemical_compound ,Aquaculture ,Metabolic waste ,14. Life underwater ,GeneralLiterature_REFERENCE(e.g.,dictionaries,encyclopedias,glossaries) ,Nitrogen cycle ,Ecology, Evolution, Behavior and Systematics ,Ecology ,business.industry ,Agricultural and Biological Sciences (miscellaneous) ,030104 developmental biology ,chemistry ,Ecological Microbiology ,Environmental chemistry ,Organismal Animal Physiology ,business ,Nitrogen Handling - Abstract
Knowledge of the mechanisms by which fish excrete their metabolic nitrogenous waste and insights into nitrogen cycling in aquaculture systems is of utmost importance to improve the sustainable commercial production of fish. In fish, most nitrogenous waste is excreted via the gills as ammonia, a potentially toxic nitrogenous compound. In this study; activity assays, physiological experiments, molecular analysis and microscopy were used to show that the gills of fish harbor a unique combination of hitherto overlooked nitrogen-cycle microorganisms that can theoretically detoxify excreted ammonia by converting it into inert dinitrogen gas. By doing so, these microorganisms may benefit from the ammonia supply by the host and prevent the build-up of this compound to toxic concentrations. This novel relationship between vertebrates and microorganisms may shed new light on nitrogen handling by ammonotelic fish species.
- Published
- 2016