Bacterial community assembly in activated sludge: mapping beta diversity across environmental variables.

ABSTRACT: Effect of ecological variables on community assembly of heterotrophic bacteria at eight full-scale and two pilot-scale activated sludge wastewater treatment plants (AS-WWTPs) were explored by pyrosequencing of 16S rRNA gene amplicons. In total, 39 samples covering a range of abiotic factors spread over space and time were analyzed. A core bacterial community of 24 families detected in at least six of the eight AS-WWTPs was defined. In addition to the core families, plant-specific families (observed at <50% AS-WWTPs) were found to be also important in the community structure. Observed beta diversity was partitioned with respect to ecological variables. Specifically, the following variables were considered: influent wastewater characteristics, season (winter vs. summer), process operations (

SUBMITTER: Isazadeh S 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC5221439 | biostudies-literature | 2016 Dec

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature