Microbial community succession of home aquarium biofilters associated with early establishment of comammox <i>Nitrospira</i>.

ABSTRACT: Nitrification in aquarium biofilters transforms toxic ammonia (NH₃/NH₄⁺) into less toxic nitrate (NO₃^-) via nitrite (NO₂^-). Known freshwater aquarium nitrifiers include ammonia- and nitrite-oxidizing bacteria, ammonia-oxidizing archaea (AOA), and complete ammonia-oxidizing Nitrospira (CMX), with CMX recently shown to dominate most freshwater aquarium biofilters. However, little is known about nitrifier succession during aquarium establishment in home settings. Based on CMX prevalence in mature aquariums and the rapid growth of ammonia-oxidizing bacteria (AOB), we hypothesized that AOB initially dominate before CMX establish. To test this, we monitored microbial succession and water chemistry in three home aquariums over 12 weeks, collecting weekly sa

SUBMITTER: McKnight MM 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC12704419 | biostudies-literature | 2025 Jan

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature