The maize rhizosphere soil is unique with diverse microorganisms. Nitrifying bacteria and archaea are ubiquitous and can transform ammonia locked up in soil or manure into nitrate; a more soluble form of nitrogen. However, nitrifying bacteria and archaea inhabiting maize rhizosphere are yet to be identified. We elucidate the diversity and abundance of nitrifying bacteria and archaea associated with maize rhizosphere across different growth stages using 16S metagenomics sequencing. Also, the influence of environmental factors on the nitrifying communities was evaluated. The maize rhizosphere soil was collected from North-West University, Molelwane, South Africa. DNA was extracted using Nucleospin Soil DNA extraction kit and the V3-V4 hypervariable region was sequenced on Illumina Miseq platform. MG-RAST was used to analyze the raw sequences. The environmental factors were measured using standard procedure. The result revealed 9 genera of nitrifying bacteria; Nitrospira, Nitrosospira, Nitrobacter, Nitrosovibrio, Nitrosomonas, Nitrosococcus, Nitrococcus, unclassified (derived from Nitrosomonadales), unclassified (derived from Nitrosomonadaceae) and 1 archaeon Candidatus Nitrososphaera. The Nitrospirae phyla group which had the most nitrifying bacteria was more abundant at the tasselling stage (67.94%). Alpha diversity showed no significant difference. However, the Beta diversity showed significant difference (P=0.01, R=0.58) across the growth stages. The growth stages had no significant effect on the diversity of nitrifying bacteria and archaea, but the tasselling stage had the most abundant. A correlation was observed among some of the environmental factors. The research outcome can be put into consideration while carrying out a biotechnological process that involves nitrifying bacteria and archaea.
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