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Spatial Abundance, Diversity, and Activity of Ammonia-Oxidizing Bacteria in Coastal Sediments of the Liaohe Estuary

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Abstract

Ammonia-oxidizing bacteria (AOB) play an important role in nitrification in estuaries. The aim of this study was to examine the spatial abundance, diversity, and activity of AOB in coastal sediments of the Liaohe Estuary using quantitative PCR, high-throughput sequencing of the amoA gene coding the ammonia monooxygenase enzyme active subunit, and sediment slurry incubation experiments. AOB abundance ranged from 8.54 × 104 to 5.85 × 106 copies g−1 of wet sediment weight and exhibited an increasing trend from the Liaohe Estuary to the open coastal zone. Potential nitrification rates (PNRs) ranged from 0.1 to 336.8 nmol N g−1 day−1 along the estuary to the coastal zone. Log AOB abundance and PNRs were significantly positively correlated. AOB richness decreased from the estuary to the coastal zone. High-throughput sequencing analysis indicated that the majority of amoA gene sequences fell within the Nitrosomonas and Nitrosomonas-like clade, and only a few sequences were clustered within the Nitrosospira clade. This finding indicates that the Nitrosomonas-related lineage may be more adaptable to the specific conditions in this estuary than the Nitrosospira lineage. Sites with high nitrification rates were located in the southern open region and were dominated by the Nitrosomonas-like lineage, whereas the Nitrosospira lineage was found primarily in the northern estuary mouth sites with low nitrification rates. Thus, nitrification potentials in Liaohe estuarine sediments in the southern open region were greater than those in the northern estuary mouth, and the Nitrosomonas-related lineage might play a more important role than the Nitrosospira lineage in nitrification in this estuary.

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Acknowledgements

We thank Hongjun Li and Chunxin Zhang for collecting the sediment samples and physiochemical data during the spring cruise. This work was supported by the National Natural Science Foundation (Grant 41676115), the National Key Research Program (Grant 2016YFA0601400), and the State Oceanic Administration (Grant GASI-03-01-02-05) of China. This study is a contribution to the international IMBER project.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Key Laboratory for Ecological Environment in Coastal Areas (SOA), National Marine Environmental Monitoring Center, 42 Linghe Street, Dalian, 116023, China

    Yongkai Chang, Jingfeng Fan, Jie Su, Hongxia Ming, Yan Shi, Fengyun Ji, Limei Guo, Bochao Li, Hao Guo & Daoming Guan

  2. College of Fisheries and Life Science, Dalian Ocean University, Dalian, 116023, China

    Yongkai Chang, Wen Zhao, Yan Shi, Fengyun Ji, Limei Guo & Bochao Li

  3. School of Life Science and Biotechnology, Dalian University of Technology, Dalian, 116023, China

    Shuaijun Zan

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  1. Yongkai Chang
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Correspondence to Jingfeng Fan.

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Chang, Y., Fan, J., Su, J. et al. Spatial Abundance, Diversity, and Activity of Ammonia-Oxidizing Bacteria in Coastal Sediments of the Liaohe Estuary. Curr Microbiol 74, 632–640 (2017). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00284-017-1226-x

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00284-017-1226-x

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