Humic Acid-Oxidizing, Nitrate-Reducing Bacteria in Agricultural Soils

Van Trump, J. Ian; Wrighton, Kelly C.; Thrash, J. Cameron; Weber, Karrie A.; Andersen, Gary L.; Coates, John D.

doi:10.1128/mbio.00044-11

Humic Acid-Oxidizing, Nitrate-Reducing Bacteria in Agricultural Soils

Journal Article · Tue Jul 12 00:00:00 EDT 2011 · mBio (Online)

DOI:https://doi.org/10.1128/mbio.00044-11· OSTI ID:1626080

Van Trump, J. Ian ^[1]; Wrighton, Kelly C. ^[2]; Thrash, J. Cameron ^[2]; Weber, Karrie A. ^[2]; Andersen, Gary L. ^[3]; Coates, John D. ^[4]

Univ. of California, Berkeley, CA (United States). Dept. of Plant and Microbial Biology; DOE/OSTI
Univ. of California, Berkeley, CA (United States). Dept. of Plant and Microbial Biology
Lawrence Berkeley National Lab. (LBNL), Berkeley, CA (United States). Earth Sciences Division
Univ. of California, Berkeley, CA (United States). Dept. of Plant and Microbial Biology; Lawrence Berkeley National Lab. (LBNL), Berkeley, CA (United States). Earth Sciences Division

This study demonstrates the prevalence, phylogenetic diversity, and physiology of nitrate-reducing microorganisms capable of utilizing reduced humic acids (HA) as electron donors in agricultural soils. Most probable number (MPN) enumeration of agricultural soils revealed large populations (10⁴ to 10⁶ cells g^-1 soil) of microorganisms capable of reducing nitrate while oxidizing the reduced HA analog 2,6-anthrahydroquinone disulfonate (AH₂DS) to its corresponding quinone. Nitrate-dependent HA-oxidizing organisms isolated from agricultural soils were phylogenetically diverse and included members of the Alphaproteobacteria, Betaproteobacteria, and Gammaproteobacteria. Advective up-flow columns inoculated with corn plot soil and amended with reduced HA and nitrate supported both HA oxidation and enhanced nitrate reduction relative to no-donor or oxidized HA controls. The additional electron donating capacity of reduced HA could reasonably be attributed to the oxidation of reduced functional groups. Subsequent 16S rRNA gene-based high-density oligonucleotide microarray (PhyloChip) indicated that reduced HA columns supported the development of a bacterial community enriched with members of the Acidobacteria, Firmicutes, and Betaproteobacteria relative to the no-donor control and initial inoculum. This study identifies a previously unrecognized role for HA in stimulating denitrification processes in saturated soil systems. Furthermore, this study indicates that reduced humic acids impact soil geochemistry and the indigenous bacterial community composition.

View Accepted Manuscript (DOE)

Research Organization:: Lawrence Berkeley National Lab. (LBNL), Berkeley, CA (United States)

Sponsoring Organization:: USDOE Office of Science (SC), Biological and Environmental Research (BER). Earth and Environmental Systems Science Division

Grant/Contract Number:: AC02-05CH11231

OSTI ID:: 1626080

Journal Information:: mBio (Online), Journal Name: mBio (Online) Journal Issue: 4 Vol. 2; ISSN 2150-7511

Publisher:: American Society for Microbiology (ASM)Copyright Statement

Country of Publication:: United States

Language:: English

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