Dynamics of nitrification and denitrification in root-oxygenated sediments and adaptation of ammonia-oxidizing bacteria to low-oxygen or anoxic habitats

Abstract

Oxygen-releasing plants may provide aerobic niches in anoxic sediments and soils for ammonia-oxidizing bacteria. The oxygen-releasing, aerenchymatous emergent macrophyte Glyceria maxima had a strong positive effect on numbers and activities of the nitrifying bacteria in its root zone in spring and early summer. The stimulation of the aerobic nitrifying bacteria in the freshwater sediment, ascribed to oxygen release by the roots of G. maxima, disappeared in late summer. Numbers and activities of the nitrifying bacteria were positively correlated, and a positive relationship with denitrification activities also was found. To assess possible adaptations of ammonia-oxidizing bacteria to low-oxygen or anoxic habitats, a comparison was made between the freshwater lake sediment and three soils differing in oxicity profiles. Oxygen kinetics and tolerance to anoxia of the ammonia-oxidizing communities from these habitats were determined. The apparent K m values for oxygen of the ammonia-oxidizing community in the lake sediment were in the range of 5 to 15 M, which was substantially lower than the range of K m values for oxygen of the ammonia-oxidizing community from a permanently oxic dune location. Upon anoxic incubation, the ammonia-oxidizing communities of dune, chalk grassland, and calcareous grassland soils lost 99, 95, and 92% of their initial nitrifying capacity, respectively. In contrast, the ammonia-oxidizing community in the lake sediment started to nitrify within 1 h upon exposure to oxygen at the level of the initial capacity. It is argued that the conservation of the nitrifying capacity during anoxic periods and the ability to react instantaneously to the presence of oxygen are important traits of nitrifiers in fluctuating oxic-anoxic environments such as the root zone of aerenchymatous plant species.

Functionally distinct communities of ammonia‐oxidizing bacteria along an estuarine salinity gradient

“…Potential nitrification rates in our study were highly variable, but were similar to potential rates from other studies in estuarine (Rysgaard et al, 1999;Caffrey et al, 2003;Dollhopf et al, 2005) and freshwater sediments (Bodelier et al, 1996). Potential rates are often much higher than in situ rates possibly because of non-limiting oxygen and substrate concentrations, while rates measured in situ may be substrate-limited.…”

Dinitrogen and nitrous oxide exchanges from an undrained monolith fen: short‐term responses following nitrate addition

“…A study by Bodelier et al (1996) also clearly demonstrated that NO 3 − production rates were lower in planted than in bare plots of freshwater sediments, attributed to NH 4 + competition by plant uptake. The same study reported equal rates of NO 3 − production in permanently waterlogged lake sediments and permanently oxic sandy dunes, demonstrating that nitrifying microorganisms can express a higher affinity for NH 4 + at lower soil oxygenation.…”

Niche separation of ammonia‐oxidizing bacteria across a tidal freshwater marsh

“…Tidal marshes offer a mosaic of different habitats created by the frequency and duration of flooding, which generate differences in the availability of substrates for nitrification. But environmental differences are also shaped by the presence or absence of plants that may compete for ammonium, but might also release oxygen in the sediment (Bodelier et al, 1996). This release is indispensable for the process of aerobic ammonia oxidation in otherwise oxygen-limited sediments.…”