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Cultivation, Growth Physiology, and Chemotaxonomy of Nitrite-Oxidizing Bacteria

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Anammox Technology in Industrial Wastewater Treatment

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Abstract

Nitrite-oxidizing bacteria (NOB) are a small group of Gram-negative, obligate aerobes and are primarily organo and/or chemoautotrophs. They oxidize nitrite to nitrate, which is the second step of the biogeochemical nitrogen (N) cycle. Because of this characteristic, it helps in removing toxic nitrite, which is harmful to living organisms. Recent studies on obligate nitrifiers have made valuable discoveries demonstrating alternative energy metabolisms, such as the oxidation of hydrogen, sulfur, formate, and other organic compounds. NOB have different lifestyles, such as heterotrophic, lithoautotrophic, and mixotrophic, and easily adapt to large and variable environments. Besides the richness of these bacteria in moderate habitats, NOB have also been detected in extreme ecosystems, such as geothermal springs, alkaline soils, and sediments. The growth of NOB has also been observed in anaerobic environments (in the absence of nitrates or oxygen), such as deep in sludge in wastewater reservoirs or in the presence of significant concentrations of sulfur. Recognizing the natural diversity of NOB is important to understand its effects on N-cycling in natural and engineered ecosystems and to reduce greenhouse gas emissions from sewage treatment plants. Despite their huge ecological importance, we have limited knowledge of the microbiology and ecology of NOB. Their activities as the main contributors and scavengers of nitric oxides in the biosphere and their key roles in the nitrification cycle have made researchers focus again on NOB; however, develo** and sustaining the growth of NOB in vitro are challenging. This section summarizes the cultivation, growth physiology, and chemotaxonomy of NOB.

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  1. Department of Food Engineering, Engineering Faculty, Ankara University, 50th Year Settlement, 06830, Gölbaşı, Ankara, Turkey

    Gülsüm Atasoy, Esra Şentürk & Pınar Şanlıbaba

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  2. Esra Şentürk
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  1. Environmental Microbiology Lab, Gujarat, India

    Maulin P. Shah

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Atasoy, G., Şentürk, E., Şanlıbaba, P. (2023). Cultivation, Growth Physiology, and Chemotaxonomy of Nitrite-Oxidizing Bacteria. In: Shah, M.P. (eds) Anammox Technology in Industrial Wastewater Treatment. Springer, Singapore. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-981-99-3459-1_5

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