Distribution of ammonia-oxidizing Betaproteobacteria community in surface sediment off the Changjiang River Estuary in summer

The spatial distribution of ammonia-oxidizing Betaproteobacteria （βAOB） was investigated by FISH （fluorescence in situ hybridization） and DGGE （denaturing gradient get electrophoresis） techniques in the sediment off the Changjiang River Estuary. Sediment samples were collected from eight stations in June before the formation of hypoxia zone in 2006. The abundance of βAOB ranged from 1.87× 10^5 to 3.53×10^5 cells/g of sediment. βAOB abundance did not present a negative correlation with salinity, whereas salinity was implicated as the primary factor affecting nitrification rates. The DGGE profiles of PCR-amplified amoA gene fragments revealed that the βAOB community structure of sample S2 separated from other samples at the level of 40% similarity. The variations in composition ofβAOB were significantly correlated with the salinity, temperature, absorption ability of sediments and TOC. The statistical analysis indicates that theβAOB abundance was a main factor to influence nitrification rates with an influence ratio of 87.7% at the level of 40% biodiversity similarity. Considering the good correlation between βAOB abundance and nitrification estimates, the abundance and diversity of βAOB community could be expected as an indirect index of nitrification activity at the study sea area in summer.

Response of ammonia-oxidizing betaproteobacteria to short- term fertilization in a salt marsh in China

This study examines the impacts of short-term(6 months) fertilization on the community structure and abundance of ammonia-oxidizing betaproteobacteria(β-AOB) and the potential nitrification rate in sediment colonized by S uaeda heteroptera in a saltmarsh located in Shuangtai estuary, China. The sediment samples were collected from plots treated with different amounts of an N fertilizer(urea supplied at 0.1, 0.2, 0.4, and 0.8 g/kg(nitrogen content in dry sediment)), and with different forms of N fertilizers(urea,(NH4) 2 SO 4, and NH_4NO_3, each supplied at 0.2 g/kg). The fertilizers were applied 1–4 times during the plant-growing season in May, July, August and September of 2013. Untreated plots were included as a control. As revealed in denaturing gradient gel electrophoresis of the 16 S r RNA gene, the β-AOB community responded to both the amount and form of N. Real-time quantitative PCR indicated that both abundance and potential nitrification rate of β-AOB increased after N addition, regardless of concentration and form(except NH_4NO_3). These results provide evidence that short-term N application influences the sediment β-AOB community, β-AOB abundance and potential nitrification rate in a saltmarsh ecosystem.