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Biofiltration in drinking water treatment (BDWT) are popular as it holds promise as an alternative to chemical treatments, yet our understanding of the key drivers and trends underlying bacterial evolution within this process remains limited. While plasmids and phages are recognized as the main vectors of horizontal gene transfer (HGT), their roles in shaping bacterial evolution in BDWT remain largely unknown. Here we leverage global metagenomic data to unravel the primary forces driving bacterial evolution in BDWT. Our results revealed that the primary vector of HGT varies depending on the type of source water (groundwater and surface water). Both plasmids and phages accelerated bacterial evolution in BDWT by enhancing genetic diversity within species, but they drove contrasting evolutionary trends in functional redundancy in different source water types. Specifically, trends towards and away from functional redundancy (indicated as gene-protein ratio) were observed in surface-water and groundwater biofilters, respectively. Virulent phages drove bacterial evolution through synergistic interactions with bacterial species capable of natural transformation and with certain natural compounds that disrupt bacterial cytoplasmic membranes. Genes relating to water purification (such as Mn(II)-oxidizing genes), microbial risks (antibiotic resistance genes), and chemical risk (polycyclic aromatic hydrocarbons) were enriched via HGT in BDWT, highlighting the necessity for heighted focus on these useful and risky objects. Overall, these discoveries enhance our understanding of bacterial evolution in BDWT and have implications for the optimization of water treatment strategies., Competing Interests: Declaration of competing interest The authors declare that they have no known competing financial interests or personal relationships that could have appeared to influence the work reported in this paper., (Copyright © 2024 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

Bioelectrochemical systems (BESs) have been tentatively applied for wastewater treatment processes, but the complex composition of wastewater could lead to difficulties in establishing functional biofilm or result in performance instability. Few studies have investigated the enrichment of biocathode with domestic wastewater (DW) and the function. A biocathode with multi-pollutant removal capabilities was enriched based on polarity inverted bioanode, which was established with DW. The biocathode function was examined using model pollutants (nitrate, nitrobenzene and Acid Orange 7) supplemented as sole or mixed electron acceptors. When compared to the anaerobic control treatment, the biofilm demonstrated significantly enhanced reduction abilities in the open circuit. For the closed circuit, their removal efficiencies were further enhanced for both the sole and mixed substrates conditions. The bioanodes community structure and diversity markedly changed after operating for 50 d as biocathodes. The biocathode multifunctionality and stability could be related to the maintenance of organic matters fermentative bacteria (mainly belonging to Bacteroidetes, Firmicutes and Synergistetes) and the enrichment of versatile pollutant-reducing bacteria (e.g. Pseudomonas, Thauera and Comamonas from Proteobacteria). Other pollutants, such as perchlorate, sulfate, heavy metals, and halogenated organics, may also work as potential electron acceptors. This study provides a new strategy to improve the biocathode community multifunctionality for simultaneous bioelectroreduction, which can be combined with other wastewater treatment processes in actual application., (Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

The relationship between biodiversity and ecosystem stability is poorly understood in microbial communities. Biofilm communities in small bioreactors called microbial electrolysis cells (MEC) contain moderate species numbers and easy tractable functional traits, thus providing an ideal platform for verifying ecological theories in microbial ecosystems. Here, we investigated the resilience of biofilm communities with a gradient of diversity, and explored the relationship between biodiversity and stability in response to a pH shock. The results showed that all bioreactors could recover to stable performance after pH disturbance, exhibiting a great resilience ability. A further analysis of microbial composition showed that the rebound of Geobacter and other exoelectrogens contributed to the resilient effectiveness, and that the presence of Methanobrevibacter might delay the functional recovery of biofilms. The microbial communities with higher diversity tended to be recovered faster, implying biofilms with high biodiversity showed better resilience in response to environmental disturbance. Network analysis revealed that the negative interactions between the two dominant genera of Geobacter and Methanobrevibacter increased when the recovery time became longer, implying the internal resource or spatial competition of key functional taxa might fundamentally impact the resilience performances of biofilm communities. This study provides new insights into our understanding of the relationship between diversity and ecosystem functioning., (© 2017 John Wiley & Sons Ltd.)

Bioelectrodegradation of various organic pollutants has been extensively studied. However, whether different cathode potentials could alter the antimicrobial-degrading biocathode community structure and composition remain poorly understood. Here, the microbial community structure and composition of the nitrofurans nitrofurazone (NFZ) degrading biocathode in response to different cathode potentials (-0.45±0.01, -0.65±0.01 and -0.86±0.05V vs standard hydrogen electrode, with applied cell voltages of 0.2, 0.5 and 0.8V, respectively) were investigated. The bioelectrodegradation efficiency and degree of NFZ were highly related to different cathode potentials. The 0.2 and 0.5V performed biocathode communities were similar but significantly differed from those of the 0.8V and open circuit biofilms. The bacteria possessing functions of nitroaromatics reduction and electrons transfer (e.g. Klebsiella, Enterococcus, Citrobacter and Desulfovibrio) were selectively enriched in different biocathode communities. This study offers new insights into the ecological response of antimicrobial-degrading biocathode communities to different cathode potentials., (Copyright © 2017 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

Objective: To study the effect of substrates variation on the electricity production of microbial fuel cell (MFC) and anodic microbial communities., Methods: An MFC was started up and operated by feeding in turn with lactate, then with propionate and finally with lactate. The anodic microbial communities were monitored by using culture-independent microbial molecular ecological techniques., Results: The switch of substrates markedly affected the power efficiency of MFC. It required relatively long time to recover the electricity generation capability as the substrate was switched. The substrates switch also changed the microbial community structure. Anaeromusa spp. , Pseudomonas spp. and Thiobacillus thioparus were dominated with lactate fed because they were enriched in the presence of lactate. When propionate was supplied as sole substrate, Dechloromonas spp. and Comamonas testosterone were selected. The electricity-producing bacteria, Geobacter spp. , were enriched by acetate from either lactate or propionate degradation. Hence, Geobacter spp. was an overlapping microbial population in the presence of the two different substrates., Conclusion: A well correspondence between substrate and anodic microbial community was observed in MFC with switching substrates. To reduce the effect of substrate fluctuation on the MFC electricity production, more complex organic substrate should be provided as broader nutrients which could improve the functional overlap of populations and MFC stability.

Elemental sulfur (S(0)) formation from and nitrogen removal on sulfide, nitrate and ammonium-laden wastewaters were achieved by denitrifying ammonium oxidation (DEAMOX) reactor with autotrophic denitrifiers and anaerobic ammonium oxidation (anammox) bacteria. The sulfide to nitrate ratio is a key process parameter for excess accumulation of S(0) and a ratio of 1.31:1 is a proposed optimum. The Alishewanella, Thauera and Candidatus Anammoximicrobium present respectively the autotrophic denitrifiers and anammox bacteria for the reactor. DEAMOX is demonstrated promising biological process for treating organics-deficient (S+N) wastewaters with excess S(0) production., (Copyright © 2015 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

Objective: To explore electricity generation and dynamic characteristics of microbial community of microbial fuel cells (MFC) started-up with mixed sludge of aerobic/anaerobic sludge., Methods: Single-chamber MFCs were constructed and characteristics of microbial community composition and structure were investigated by culture-independent microbial molecular techniques., Results: MFC started up successfully after three cycles' operation, and the maximum output voltage was up to 230 mV. The maximum power density reached 11.15 W/m3 at the outer resistance of 1656 Ω. The structure of microbial community on the anodic biofilm was different from that of seed sludge and microbial diversity reduced. The dominant microbial groups on anodic biofilm were Betaproteobacteria (24.90%), Bacteroidetes (21.30%), Firmicutes (9.70%), Gammaproteobacteria (8.50%), Deltaproteobacteria ( 7.90%), Chloroflexi (4.20%) and Alphaproteobacteria (3.60%). The biofilm-forming microbial genera Zoogloea and Acinetobacter accounted for 5.00% and 3.90% of total community. The abundance of electricity-producing bacteria Geobacter spp. increased from 0.60% in mixed sludge to 2.60% on the biofilm., Conclusion: Dominant microbial populations in mixed sludge were selected by long-term acclimation and finally a beneficial microbial group was built on the anodic biofilm. The populations group was helpful to form a functional and active biofilm, which consequently benefited to produce electricity under anaerobic condition by fermenting organic matter.

Ammonia-oxidizing archaea (AOA) and bacteria (AOB) are widely distributed in the natural environment and play crucial roles in the nitrification process and the removal of nitrogen (N). Although planktonic microbial community plays an important role in river biogeochemical cycles, few studies have attempted to address the characteristics of AOA and AOB in the water column of river ecosystems. This study examined the community structures, distributions and abundance of planktonic AOA and AOB in the Dongjiang River and their responses to the changes in environmental parameters through quantitative polymerase chain reaction, cloning, and sequencing of ammonia mono-oxygenase (amoA). The abundance ratio of AOB to AOA varied from 0.07 to 9.4 along the river and was positively correlated with the concentration of ammonium. Significantly positive correlations were observed between the abundance of AOB and potential nitrification rates, which suggested that the contribution of AOB to nitrification was greater than that of AOA in the river. Phylogenetic analyses showed that AOA communities could be divided into three branches of Thaumarchaeota: Group 1.1a, Group 1.1a associated and Group 1.1b, with most sequences belonging to Group 1.1a. All AOB sequences fell within Nitrosomonas and Nitrosospira species, and the majority of sequences were affiliated with the latter. Multivariate statistical analyses indicated that the community distributions of AOA and AOB were significantly correlated with the concentrations of nitrate and total suspended solids, respectively. These findings fundamentally improved our understanding of the role of planktonic AOA and AOB in nitrogen cycling and their responses to changes in environmental factors in the river ecosystem., (Copyright © 2014 Institut Pasteur. Published by Elsevier Masson SAS. All rights reserved.)

The elemental sulfur (S°) recovery was evaluated in the presence of nitrate in two development models of simultaneous desulfurization and denitrification (SDD) process. At the loading rates of 0.9 kg S/(m³·day) for sulfide and 0.4 kg N/(m³·day) for nitrate, S° conversion rate was 91.1% in denitrifying sulfide removal (DSR) model which was higher than in integrated simultaneous desulfurization and denitrification (ISDD) model (25.6%). A comprehensive analysis of functional diversity, structure and metabolic potential of microbial communities was examined in two models by using functional gene array (GeoChip 2.0). GeoChip data indicated that diversity indices, community structure, and abundance of functional genes were distinct between two models. Diversity indices (Simpson's diversity index (1/D) and Shannon-Weaver index (H')) of all detected genes showed that with elevated influent loading rate, the functional diversity decreased in ISDD model but increased in DSR model. In contrast to ISDD model, the overall abundance of dsr genes was lower in DSR model, while some functional genes targeting from nitrate-reducing sulfide-oxidizing bacteria (NR-SOB), such as Thiobacillus denitrificans, Sulfurimonas denitrificans, and Paracoccus pantotrophus were more abundant in DSR model which were highly associated with the change of S(0) conversion rate obtained in two models. The results obtained in this study provide additional insights into the microbial metabolic mechanisms involved in ISDD and DSR models, which in turn will improve the overall performance of SDD process., (Copyright © 2014. Published by Elsevier B.V.)

The stress of poised cathode potential condition and carbon source switchover for functional biocathode microbial community influences is poorly understood. Using high-throughput functional gene array (GeoChip v4.2) and Illumina 16S rRNA gene MiSeq sequencing, we investigated the phylogenetic and functional microbial community of the initial inoculum and biocathode for bioelectrochemical reduction of nitrobenzene to less toxic aniline in response to carbon source switchover (from organic glucose to inorganic bicarbonate). Selective transformation of nitrobenzene to aniline maintained in the bicarbonate fed biocathode although nitrobenzene reduction rate and aniline formation rate were significantly decreased compared to those of the glucose-fed biocathode. When the electrical circuit of the glucose-fed biocathode was disconnected, both rates of nitrobenzene reduction and of aniline formation were markedly decreased, confirming the essential role of an applied electric field for the enhancement of nitrobenzene reduction. The stress of poised cathode potential condition led to clear succession of microbial communities from the initial inoculum to biocathode and the carbon source switchover obviously changed the microbial community structure of biocathode. Most of the dominant genera were capable of reducing nitroaromatics to the corresponding aromatic amines regardless of the performance mode. Heterotrophic Enterococcus was dominant in the glucose-fed biocathode while autotrophic Paracoccus and Variovorax were dominant in the bicarbonate-fed biocathode. Relatively higher intensity of diverse multi-heme cytochrome c (putatively involved in electrons transfer) and carbon fixation genes was observed in the biocarbonate-fed biocathode, likely met the requirement of the energy conservation and maintained the nitrobenzene selective reduction capability after carbon source switchover. Extracellular pilin, which are important for biofilm formation and potential conductivity, had a higher gene abundance in the glucose-fed biocathode might explain the enhancement of electro-catalysis activity for nitrobenzene reduction with glucose supply. Dominant nitroaromatics-reducing or electrochemically active bacteria and diverse functional genes related to electrons transfer and nitroaromatics reduction were associated with nitrobenzene reduction efficiency of biocathode communities in response to carbon source switchover., (Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

Limited oxygen supply to anaerobic wastewater treatment systems had been demonstrated as an effective strategy to improve elemental sulfur (S(0)) recovery, coupling sulfate reduction and sulfide oxidation. However, little is known about the impact of dissolved oxygen (DO) on the microbial functional structures in these systems. We used a high throughput tool (GeoChip) to evaluate the microbial community structures in a biological desulfurization reactor under micro-aerobic conditions (DO: 0.02-0.33 mg/L). The results indicated that the microbial community functional compositions and structures were dramatically altered with elevated DO levels. The abundances of dsrA/B genes involved in sulfate reduction processes significantly decreased (p < 0.05, LSD test) at relatively high DO concentration (DO: 0.33 mg/L). The abundances of sox and fccA/B genes involved in sulfur/sulfide oxidation processes significantly increased (p < 0.05, LSD test) in low DO concentration conditions (DO: 0.09 mg/L) and then gradually decreased with continuously elevated DO levels. Their abundances coincided with the change of sulfate removal efficiencies and elemental sulfur (S(0)) conversion efficiencies in the bioreactor. In addition, the abundance of carbon degradation genes increased with the raising of DO levels, showing that the heterotrophic microorganisms (e.g., fermentative microorganisms) were thriving under micro-aerobic condition. This study provides new insights into the impacts of micro-aerobic conditions on the microbial functional structure of sulfate-reducing sulfur-producing bioreactors, and revealed the potential linkage between functional microbial communities and reactor performance., (Copyright © 2014 The Research Centre for Eco-Environmental Sciences, Chinese Academy of Sciences. Published by Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)

A new approach that improved the dechlorination and mineralization of 4-chlorophenol (4-CP) was demonstrated in a sequential biocathode-bioanode bioelectrochemical system (BES) with mixed photosynthetic bacteria (PSB). The biocathode with additional PSB inoculation showed higher 4-CP dechlorination efficiency (DE) and maximum current (81.8 ± 2.9%, 0.021 ± 0.002A) than that at abiotic cathode (45.3 ± 3.7%, 0.011 ± 0.002A) (P<0.005). Light response in biocathode BES with or without PSB ascertained the important role of PSB played in the dechlorination and current generation. Dechlorination and mineralization of 4-CP was achieved in the sequential biocathode-bioanode BES, which could be further enhanced with PSB inoculation in both cathode chamber and anode chamber. 4-CP DE in the cathode chamber was improved from 55.0 ± 2.0% to 78.8 ± 4.9%, and the phenol degradation in the anode chamber was improved from 65.3 ± 2.1% to 71.3 ± 1.4%. This study directed a new way for improving dechlorination at biocathode and product degradation at bioanode with PSB inoculation in BES., (Copyright © 2014 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.)

Ammonia-oxidizing archaea (AOA) and bacteria (AOB) play important roles in nitrification. However, limited information about the characteristics of AOA and AOB in the river ecosystem is available. The distribution and abundance of AOA and AOB in the sediments of the Dongjiang River, a drinking water source for Hong Kong, were investigated by clone library analysis and quantitative real-time PCR. Phylogenetic analysis showed that Group 1.1b- and Group 1.1b-associated sequences of AOA predominated in sediments with comparatively high carbon and nitrogen contents (e.g. total carbon (TC) >13 g kg(-1) sediment, NH4(+)-N >144 mg kg(-1) sediment), while Group 1.1a- and Group 1.1a-associated sequences were dominant in sediments with opposite conditions (e.g. TC <4 g kg(-1) sediment, NH4(+)-N <93 mg kg(-1) sediment). Although Nitrosomonas- and Nitrosospira-related sequences of AOB were detected in the sediments, nearly 70% of the sequences fell into the Nitrosomonas-like B cluster, suggesting similar sediment AOB communities along the river. Higher abundance of AOB than AOA was observed in almost all of the sediments in the Dongjiang River, while significant correlations were only detected between the distribution of AOA and the sediment pH and TC, which suggested that AOA responded more sensitively than AOB to variations of environmental factors. These results extend our knowledge about the environmental responses of ammonia oxidizers in the river ecosystem.

GeoChip (II) and single strand conformation polymorphism (SSCP) were used to characterize anode microbial communities of a microbial electrolysis cell (MEC). Biofilm communities, enriched in a two-chamber MEC (R1, 0.6 V applied) having a coulombic efficiency (CE) of 35±4% and a hydrogen yield (Y(H₂))of 31±3%, were used as the inoculum for a new reactor (R2). After three months R2 achieved stable performance with CE=38±4% and (Y(H₂)). Few changes in the predominant populations were observed from R1 to R2. Unlike sludge inoculation process in R1 in the beginning, little further elimination was aroused by community competitions in anode biofilm reformation in R2. Functional genes detection of biofilm indicated that cytochrome genes enriched soon in new reactor R2, and four genera (Desulfovibrio, Rhodopseudomonas, Shewanella and Geobacter) were likely to contribute to exoelectrogenic activity. This work also implied that symbiosis of microbial communities (exoelectrogens and others) contribute to system performance and stability., (Copyright © 2011 Elsevier B.V. All rights reserved.)

Denitrifying sulfide removal (DSR) processes simultaneously convert sulfide, nitrate, and chemical oxygen demand from industrial wastewater into elemental sulfur, dinitrogen gas, and carbon dioxide, respectively. The failure of a DSR process is signaled by high concentrations of sulfide in reactor effluent. Conventionally, DSR reactor failure is blamed for overcompetition for heterotroph to autotroph communities. This study indicates that the elementary sulfur produced by oxidizing sulfide that is a recoverable resource from sulfide-laden wastewaters can be reduced back to sulfide by sulfur-reducing Methanobacterium sp. The Methanobacterium sp. was stimulated with excess organic carbon (acetate) when nitrite was completely consumed by heterotrophic denitrifiers. Adjusting hydraulic retention time of a DSR reactor when nitrite is completely consumed provides an additional control variable for maximizing DSR performance.

A microbial electrolysis cell (MEC) is a bioelectrochemical system that can produce hydrogen from acetate at high hydrogen recoveries, but the composition and structure of the microbial communities in this system have not been extensively studied. We used a high throughput metagenomics technology (GeoChip) to examine the microbial community functional structure in MECs initially operated under different conditions. We found that startup conditions had little or no effect on reactor performance in terms of Coulombic efficiencies (CEs) and COD removals, somewhat greater effects on CO(2) and CH(4) production, and very large effects on hydrogen production. Hydrogen yields were generally higher for reactors that were always operated as MECs than those initially operated as MFCs. Hydrogen yields were nine times larger for MEC reactors with an applied voltage of 0.7 V (64%∼80% efficiencies) than 0.3 V (<7-8%), independent of startup conditions. GeoChip analysis revealed that the functional and phylogenetic diversity of MEC microbial communities after 4 months was quite high despite the use of only a single substrate (acetate). MECs with the largest hydrogen yields had the highest microbial diversity. Multivariate analyses showed that communities that developed in the MECs were well separated from those present under startup conditions, indicating reactor operation altered microbial community composition. Community shifts based on a Mantel test were significantly related to CEs and COD removals in these reactors, suggesting that there were significant changes in microbial community composition as a result of conditions that affected MEC performance. Common well-known exoelectrogenic bacteria (e.g., Geobacter, Shewanella, Desulfovibrio, and Anaeromyxobacter) were found in these systems, but their importance in determining reactor functional performance was not supported with a high confidence in our statistical analysis.

Hydrogen production from lignocellulosic biomass is both sustainable and environmentally friendly, which is garnering more and more attention across the world, with an expectation to challenge the shortage of fossil fuels supply and climate change as well. In this article, the update research progress and technology development of biohydrogen production are reviewed, with a focus on biomass pretreatment, hydrogen-producing microorganisms and process engineering strategies. And in the meantime, a roadmap for more efficient and economic biohydrogen production is envisioned.

Objective: To analyze the impact of tillage and fertilization on bacterial community structure under different depth in black soil., Methods: We used denaturing gradient gel electrophoresis (DGGE) profile analysis of bacterial community based on the 16S rRNA gene combining soil physico-chemical characteristics., Results: DGGE profiles showed that tillage and fertilization influenced more on bacterial community structrue in the surface soil than the subsurface and deep soil, and the divergence distance between the tillage soil and the control was about 4%. Subsurface and deep soil affected less compared with the control, and the divergence distance was 2%. The vertical similarity of bacterial community structure between subsurface and the deep soil was higher than that of suface soil., Conclusion: Tillage and fertilization affected the surface bacterial community (0-30 cm), whereas little on the deeper soil (> 100 cm) bacterial community.

Microbial conversion of lignocellulose to hydrogen is a fascinating way to provide a renewable energy source. A mesophilic bacterium strain G1 that had high cellulose degradation and hydrogen production activity (2.38 mmol H(2) g(-1) cellulose) was isolated from rumen fluid and identified as the Enterococcus gallinarum. Hydrogen production from cellulose by using sequential co-cultures of a cellulosic-hydrolysis bacterium G1 and Ethanoigenens harbinense B49 was investigated. With an initial Avicel concentration of 5 g l(-l), the sequential co-culture with G1 and strain Ethanoigenens harbinense B49 produced H(2) yield approximately 2.97 mmol H(2) g(-1) cellulose for the co-culture system.

This work conducted a denitrifying sulfide removal (DSR) test in an expanded granular sludge bed (EGSB) reactor at sustainable loadings of 6.09 kg m(-3) day(-1) for sulfide, 3.11 kg m(-3) day(-1) for nitrate-nitrogen, and 3.27 kg m(-1) day(-1) for acetate-carbon with >93% efficiency, which is significantly higher than those reported in literature. Strains Pseudomonas sp., Nitrincola sp., and Azoarcus sp. very likely yield heterotrophs. Strains Thermothrix sp. and Sulfurovum sp. are the autotrophs required for the proposed high-rate EGSB-DSR system. The EGSB-DSR reactor experienced two biological breakdowns, one at loadings of 4.87, 2.13, and 1.82 kg m(-3) day(-1); reactor function was restored by increasing nitrate and acetate loadings. Another breakdown occurred at loadings of up to 8.00, 4.08, and 4.50 kg m(-1) day(-1); the heterotrophic denitrification pathway declined faster than the autotrophic pathway. The mechanism of DSR breakdown is as follows. High sulfide concentration inhibits heterotrophic denitrifiers, and the system therefore accumulates nitrite. Autotrophic denitrifiers are then inhibited by the accumulated nitrite, thereby leading to breakdown of the DSR process.

This study studied the cultivation of granules from an expanded granular sludge bed reactor that simultaneously transforms sulfates, nitrates, and oxygen to elementary sulfur, nitrogen gas, and carbon dioxides, respectively. The living cells accumulate at the granule outer layers, as revealed by the multicolor staining and confocal laser scanning microscope technique. The microbial community comprises sulfate-reducing bacteria (SRB, Desulfomicrobium sp.), heterotrophic (Pseudomonas aeruginosa and Sulfurospirillum sp.), and autotrophic denitrifiers (Sulfurovum sp. and Paracoccus denitrificans) whose population dynamics at different sulfate and nitrate loading rates are monitored with the single-strand conformation polymorphism and denaturing gradient gel electrophoresis technique. The Desulfomicrobium sp. presents one of the dominating strains following reactor startup. At high sulfate and nitrate loading rates, the heterotrophic denitrifiers overcompete autotrophic denitrifiers to reduce SRB activities. Conversely, suddenly reducing nitrate loading rates completely removes the heterotrophic denitrifier Sulfurospirillum sp. from the granules and activates the autotrophic denitrifiers. The physical fixation of different groups of functional strains in granules fine-tunes the strains' activities, and hence the reactor performance.

The roles of fermentative acidogenic bacteria and sulfate-reducing bacteria (SRB) in lactate degradation and sulfate reduction in a sulfidogenic bioreactor were investigated by traditional chemical monitoring and culture-independent methods. A continuously stirred tank reactor fed with synthetic wastewater containing lactate and SO(2-)(4) at 35 degrees C, 10h of hydraulic retention time was used. The results showed that sulfate removal efficiency reached 99%, and sulfide and acetate were the main end products after 20 d of operation. 16S rRNA gene based clone libraries and single-strand conformation polymorphism profiles demonstrated that the proportion of SRB increased from 16% to 95%, and that Desulfobulbus spp., Desulfovibrio spp., Pseudomonas spp. and Clostridium spp. formed a stable, dominant community structure. The decreasing COD/SO(2-)(4) ratio had little effect on the community pattern except that Pseudomonas spp. and Desulfobulbus spp. increased slightly. The addition of molybdate to the influent significantly changed the microbial community, sulfate removal efficiency and the pattern of end products. Clostridium spp., Bacteroides spp. and Ruminococcus spp. became the dominant community members. The main end products switched from acetate to ethanol and then to propionate with the oxidation-reduction potentials increasing from -420 to -290 mV. A lactate degradation pathway was deduced: lactate served as the electronic donor for Desulfovibrio spp., or was fermented by Clostridium spp. and Bacteroides spp. to produce propionate or ethanol, which were subsequently utilized by Desulfobulbus spp. and Desulfovibrio spp. The acidotrophic SRB oxidized part of the acetate finally.

High-rate biological conversion of sulfide and nitrate in synthetic wastewater to, respectively, elemental sulfur (S(0)) and nitrogen-containing gas (such as N(2)) was achieved in an expanded granular sludge bed (EGSB) reactor. A novel strategy was adopted to first cultivate mature granules using anaerobic sludge as seed sludge in sulfate-laden medium. The cultivated granules were then incubated in sulfide-laden medium to acclimate autotrophic denitrifiers. The incubated granules converted sulfide, nitrate, and acetate simultaneously in the same EGSB reactor to S(0), N-containing gases and CO(2) at loading rates of 3.0 kg S m(-3) d(-1), 1.45 kg N m(-3) d(-1), and 2.77 kg Ac m(-1) d(-1), respectively, and was not inhibited by sulfide concentrations up to 800 mg l(-1). Effects of the C/N ratio on granule performance were identified. The granules cultivated in the sulfide-laden medium have Pseudomonas spp. and Azoarcus sp. presenting the heterotrophs and autotrophs that co-work in the high-rate EGSB-SDD (simultaneous desulfurization and denitrification) reactor.

Experiments on organic acids conversion in methanogenic-phase of the two-phase anaerobic process were conducted. The results showed that when the acidogenic-phase was in mixed acids fermentation and its load was 41.5 kg/(m3-d), the load of methanogenic-phase was 6.05 kg/(m3.d), the substrate conversion velocity of bacteria inhabited at the same height of UASB reactor as follows: acetic acid > ethanol > butyric acid > propionic acid; ethanol-utilized microbial had the same pH range as methanogenic bacteria; ethanol-type fermentation was the optimal acidogenci-type fermentation for the two-phase anaerobic process; the conversion of acetic acid was rather high, but the others organic acids will be convert to acetic acid make it the rate-limiting step for anaerobic degradation.

In order to discuss the cooperation of H2-producing fermentation bacteria (HPFB) in mixed culture, a batch test fed with glucose and complex organic substance (starch, beef, PEP and peptone) respectively, was conducted to investigate the effects of mixed culture on H2-producing ability. For the systemic and accurate analysis, three kinds of the mixed culture were use to this batch test. It included that the mixed culture with five strains of HPFB (B49, H1, LM12, LM11 and B51), B49 and three stains of non-HPFB (L10, Bacteroide 3-2, Sporobacterl), and B49 and hydrogen producing sludge. The results showed that the cooperation of mixed culturing bacteria was conditional on the substrates. When fed with glucose, which were easily utilized by HPB, the H2-producing ability of HPB was restrained because of the competition on the co-substrate between HPB and other fermentation bacteria, and it was quite difficult for the cooperation of mixed culturing bacteria to be performed. When fed with complex organic substance, the H2-producing ability of HPB was enhanced via the cooperation of mixed culturing bacteria. Furthermore, a strategy was put forward, that is, different kind of HPB cultures could be adopted according to the difference of substrates.

Microorganisms in wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs) are essential for water purification to protect public and environmental health. However, the diversity of microorganisms and the factors that control it are poorly understood. Using a systematic global-sampling effort, we analysed the 16S ribosomal RNA gene sequences from ~1,200 activated sludge samples taken from 269 WWTPs in 23 countries on 6 continents. Our analyses revealed that the global activated sludge bacterial communities contain ~1 billion bacterial phylotypes with a Poisson lognormal diversity distribution. Despite this high diversity, activated sludge has a small, global core bacterial community (n = 28 operational taxonomic units) that is strongly linked to activated sludge performance. Meta-analyses with global datasets associate the activated sludge microbiomes most closely to freshwater populations. In contrast to macroorganism diversity, activated sludge bacterial communities show no latitudinal gradient. Furthermore, their spatial turnover is scale-dependent and appears to be largely driven by stochastic processes (dispersal and drift), although deterministic factors (temperature and organic input) are also important. Our findings enhance our mechanistic understanding of the global diversity and biogeography of activated sludge bacterial communities within a theoretical ecology framework and have important implications for microbial ecology and wastewater treatment processes.

Abstract: In order to optimize operations of microbial electrolysis cell (MEC) for hydrogen production, microbial anode potential (MAP) was analyzed as a function of factors in biofilm anode system, including pH, substrate and applied voltage. The results in “H” shape reactor showed that MAP reflected the information when any factor became limiting for hydrogen production. Commonly, hydrogen generation started around anode potential of −250 mV to −300 mV. While, higher current density and higher hydrogen rate were obtained when MAP went down to −400 mV or even lower in this study. Biofilm anode could work normally between pH 6.5 and 7.0, while the lowest anode potential appeared around 6.8–7.0. However, when pH was lower 6.0 or substrate concentration was less than 50 mg L−1 in anode chamber, MAP went up to −300 mV or above, leading to hydrogen reduction. Applied voltage did not affect MAP much during the process of hydrogen production. Anode potential analysis also showed that planktonic bacteria in suspended solution presented positive effects on biofilm anode system and they contributed to enhance electron transfer by reducing internal resistance and lowering minimum voltage needed for hydrogen production to some extent. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Abstract: A functional bacterial consortium that can effectively hydrolyze cellobiose and produce bio-hydrogen was isolated by a concentration-to-extinction approach. The sludge from a cattle feedlot manure composting plant was incubated with 2.5–20gl−1 cellobiose at 35°C and pH 6.0. The microbial diversity of serially concentrated suspensions significantly decreased following increasing cellobiose concentration, finally leaving only two viable strains, Clostridium butyricum strain W4 and Enterococcus saccharolyticus strain. This consortium has a maximum specific hydrogen production rate of 2.19mol H2 molhexose−1 at 5gl−1 cellobiose. The metabolic pathways shifted from ethanol-type to acetate-butyrate type as cellobiose concentration increased from 2.5 to >7gl−1. The concentration-to-extinction approach is effective for isolating functional consortium from natural microflora. In this case the functional strains of interest are more tolerant to the increased loadings of substrates than the non-functional strains. [Copyright &y& Elsevier]

Large-scale use of ammonia, sulphate, and nitrate in industrial manufacturing has resulted in the generation of industrial wastewater pollutants. However, approaches to eliminate such contamination have not been extensively studied. Accordingly, in this study, we investigated the succession of bacteria under different influent loadings in a mixotrophic denitrification desulphurisation system. Four expanded granular sludge bed reactors were operated simultaneously. The sulphide loading of reactor I was 1.2 kg/m3‧day, the sulphide load of reactor II was 2.4 kg/m3‧day, and the sulphide load of reactor III was 3.6 kg/m3‧day. The molar ratio of carbon versus nitrogen in the influent under each condition was fixed at 1.26:1, and the molar ratio of sulphur versus nitrogen was fixed at 5:6; each reactor was operated for 90 days. Reactor IV was a verification reactor. The three conditions were repeated, and each condition was operated for 90 days. Middle- and late-stage samples under each condition were sequenced using a high-throughput sequencer. Azoarcus , Thauera , Arcobacter , and Pseudomonas were the core genera of the denitrification desulphurisation system under mixotrophic conditions. The genus Azoarcus was a cornerstone genus of mixotrophic conditions, as demonstrated using the random forest model and correlation network analysis. • We investigated bacteria in a mixotrophic denitrification desulphurisation system. • Four expanded granular sludge bed reactors were operated simultaneously. • Azoarcus , Thauera , Arcobacter , and Pseudomonas were the core genera. • Azoarcus was a cornerstone genus of mixotrophic conditions. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]