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Effects of Elevated CO2 on Communities of Denitrifying Bacteria and Methanogens in a Temperate Marsh Microcosm

  • Soil Microbiology
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Abstract

The effects of elevated CO2 on soil bacterial community with upland vegetation have been widely studied, but limited information is available regarding responses of denitrifier and methanogen communities to elevated CO2 in wetland ecosystems. Using restriction fragment length polymorphism (RFLP), terminal RFLP analysis, and real-time quantitative PCR, we compared communities of denitrifiers and methanogens in a laboratory-scale wetland system planted with one of three macrophytes, Typha latifolia, Scirpus lacustris, or Juncus effusus, after 110 days of incubation. Our study showed that elevated CO2 could affect community structures of both denitrifiers and methanogens, each of which had a unique response pattern. In particular, elevated CO2 shifted nirS-containing community with a unique structure irrespective of vegetation type. mcrA-containing community appeared to shift to community with unique types of hydrogenotrophs under elevated CO2 conditions. The change of dissolved organic carbon driven by elevated CO2 appeared to be related with the shift of both denitrifiers and methanogens. Overall, this study indicates that elevated CO2 could change the community structure of denitrifiers and methanogens temporarily. These results also suggest a presence of stable dominant populations that were not substantially affected by changes in CO2 concentration.

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Acknowledgments

This study was supported by EcoSTAR (No. 08-III-12) and NRF (2010-0028708, 2011-0030838)

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  1. School of Civil and Environmental Engineering, Yonsei University, Seoul, 120-749, South Korea

    Seung-Hoon Lee & Hojeong Kang

  2. National Institute of Environmental Research, Incheon, South Korea

    Seon-Young Kim

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Correspondence to Hojeong Kang.

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Lee, SH., Kim, SY. & Kang, H. Effects of Elevated CO2 on Communities of Denitrifying Bacteria and Methanogens in a Temperate Marsh Microcosm. Microb Ecol 64, 485–498 (2012). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00248-012-0036-8

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