Use of pyrosequencing to explore the benthic bacterial community structure in a river impacted by wastewater treatment plant discharges

Res Microbiol. 2014 Jul-Aug;165(6):468-71. doi: 10.1016/j.resmic.2014.04.002. Epub 2014 Apr 13.

Abstract

In this study, we determined the diversity and composition of benthic bacterial communities collected in river sediments upstream and downstream from a wastewater treatment plant (WWTP). Pyrosequencing of bacterial 16S rRNA genes revealed notable differences between the communities from upstream and downstream sites. In particular, a higher relative abundance of Acidobacteria, Chloroflexi, Deltaproteobacteria and Firmicutes and a lower proportion of Gammaproteobacteria and Verrucomicrobia sequences were detected at the downstream site compared to the upstream site. These findings represent a first approximation of the impact of WWTP discharges on environmental microbial communities.

Keywords: Aquatic ecosystem; Microbial diversity; Sediment; Wastewater treatment plant.

Publication types

  • Comparative Study
  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Bacteria / classification*
  • Bacteria / genetics
  • Biota*
  • Cluster Analysis
  • DNA, Bacterial / chemistry
  • DNA, Bacterial / genetics
  • DNA, Ribosomal / chemistry
  • DNA, Ribosomal / genetics
  • Geologic Sediments / microbiology*
  • Industrial Waste*
  • Molecular Sequence Data
  • Phylogeny
  • RNA, Ribosomal, 16S / genetics
  • Rivers / microbiology*
  • Sequence Analysis, DNA
  • Water Pollution, Chemical*
  • Water Purification*

Substances

  • DNA, Bacterial
  • DNA, Ribosomal
  • Industrial Waste
  • RNA, Ribosomal, 16S