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Molecular Analyses of the Microbial Community Composition of an Anoxic Basin of a Municipal Wastewater Treatment Plant Reveal a Novel Lineage of Proteobacteria

  • Environmental Microbiology
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Abstract

A culture-independent molecular phylogenetic approach was used to study prokaryotic diversity in an anoxic activated sludge from a municipal wastewater treatment plant. Two 16S rRNA gene libraries were constructed using total genomic DNA and amplified by polymerase chain reaction using primers specific for archaeal or bacterial domains. Phylogenetic analysis of 132 and 249 almost full-length 16S rRNA genes for Archaea and Bacteria, respectively, was done using the ARB software package. Phylogenetic groups affiliated with the Archaea belong to Euryarchaeota (93.8% of the operational taxonomic units [OTUs]) and Crenarchaeota (6.2% of the OTUs). Within the bacterial library, 84.8% of the OTUs represent novel putative phylotypes never described before and affiliated with ten divisions. The Proteobacteria phylum is the most abundant and diversified phylogenetic group representing 60.4% of the OTUs, followed by Bacteroidetes (22.1%) and gram-positives (6.1%). Interestingly, we detected a novel Proteobacteria monophyletic group distinct from the five known subclasses, which we named New Lineage of Proteobacteria (NLP) lineage, and it is composed of eight clones representing 4.6% of the Proteobacteria. A new 16S rRNA-targeted hybridization probe was designed and fluorescent in situ hybridization analyses shows representatives of NLP as cocci-shaped microorganisms. The Chloroflexi, Acidobacterium, and Nitrospira phyla and TM7 candidate division are each represented by ≤3% of clone sequences. A comprehensive set of eight 16S and 23S rRNA-targeted oligonucleotide probes was used to quantify these major groups by dot blot hybridization within 12 samples. The Proteobacteria accounted for 82.5 ± 4.9%, representing the most abundant phyla. The Bacteroidetes and Planctomycetales groups accounted for 4.9 ± 1.3% and 4 ± 1.7%, respectively. Firmicutes and Actinobacteria together accounted for only 1.9 ± 0.5%. The set of probes covers 93.4 ± 14% of the total bacterial population rRNA within the anoxic basin.

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Acknowledgments

This study was partly supported by a grant from the European Union for research project WIRES (EVK1-CT2000-00050). We are very grateful to S. Cure for reading the manuscript, to the Genoscope sequencing team for the technical assistance, and M. Trouvé and D. Dehon for providing the samples from the WWTP.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Faculté des Sciences de Bizerte, Université 7 Novembre à Carthage, Bizerte, Tunisia

    Rakia Chouari

  2. CEA, DSV, IG, Genoscope, 2 Rue Gaston Crémieux, Evry, 91057, France

    Denis Le Paslier, Patrick Daegelen, Jean Weissenbach & Abdelghani Sghir

  3. CNRS-UMR-8030, 2 Rue Gaston Crémieux, Evry, 91057, France

    Denis Le Paslier, Patrick Daegelen, Jean Weissenbach & Abdelghani Sghir

  4. Université d’Evry Val d’Essonne, 50 avenue François Mitterrand, Evry, 91025, France

    Jean Weissenbach & Abdelghani Sghir

  5. Génopôle de l’Institut Pasteur, 28 rue du Dr Roux, Paris, 75724 cedex 15, France

    Catherine Dauga

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  1. Rakia Chouari
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Correspondence to Abdelghani Sghir.

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Chouari, R., Le Paslier, D., Daegelen, P. et al. Molecular Analyses of the Microbial Community Composition of an Anoxic Basin of a Municipal Wastewater Treatment Plant Reveal a Novel Lineage of Proteobacteria . Microb Ecol 60, 272–281 (2010). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00248-009-9632-7

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