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Characterization of extracellular polymeric substances from biofilm in the process of starting-up a partial nitrification process under salt stress

  • Applied Microbial and Cell Physiology
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Abstract

In this study, the characteristics of extracellular polymeric substance (EPS) fractions of biofilm during the process of establishing a partial nitrification under salt stress were analyzed in terms of concentrations, molecular weight distribution, and three-dimensional excitation–emission matrix (EEM) fluorescence spectroscopy. A partial nitrification was formed successfully with a salinity of 1%. Results indicated that the amount of total EPS increased from 54.2 mg g−1 VSS−1 on day 1 to 99.6 mg g−1 VSS−1 on day 55 due to the NaCl concentration changed from 0 to 10.0 g L−1 in a biofilm reactor. The changes of loosely bound EPS (LB-EPS) compounds under different salt concentrations appeared to be more significant than those of the tightly bound EPS. A clear release of polysaccharides in the LB-EPS fraction was detected during the enhancement of salinity. This was considered as a protective response of bacteria to the salinity. Three fluorescence peaks were identified in the EEM fluorescence spectra of the EPS fraction samples. Two peaks were assigned to the protein-like fluorophores, and the third peak was located at the excitation/emission wavelengths of 275 nm/425–435 nm of the spectra of EPS fractions till the salinity maintained constant at 1%. This information is valuable for understanding the characteristics of EPS isolated from biomass in a saline nitrogen removal system.

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Acknowledgment

This research was supported by the National Natural Science Foundation of China (project no. 50778156) and the Knowledge Innovation Project of Chinese Academy of Science (project no. KZCXZ-YM-451).

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. Key Laboratory of Urban Environment and Health, Institute of Urban Environment, Chinese Academy of Sciences, Xiamen, 361021, People’s Republic of China

    Zhao-Ji Zhang, Shao-Hua Chen, Shu-Mei Wang & Hong-Yuan Luo

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  1. Zhao-Ji Zhang
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  2. Shao-Hua Chen
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  3. Shu-Mei Wang
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  4. Hong-Yuan Luo
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Correspondence to Shao-Hua Chen.

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Zhang, ZJ., Chen, SH., Wang, SM. et al. Characterization of extracellular polymeric substances from biofilm in the process of starting-up a partial nitrification process under salt stress. Appl Microbiol Biotechnol 89, 1563–1571 (2011). https://doi.org/10.1007/s00253-010-2947-y

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