Bacterial Pathogens and Community Composition in Advanced Sewage Treatment Systems Revealed by Metagenomics Analysis Based on High-Throughput Sequencing

This study used 454 pyrosequencing, Illumina high-throughput sequencing and metagenomic analysis to investigate bacterial pathogens and their potential virulence in a sewage treatment plant (STP) applying both conventional and advanced treatment processes. Pyrosequencing and Illumina sequencing consistently demonstrated that Arcobacter genus occupied over 43.42% of total abundance of potential pathogens in the STP. At species level, potential pathogens Arcobacter butzleri, Aeromonas hydrophila and Klebsiella pneumonia dominated in raw sewage, which was also confirmed by quantitative real time PCR. Illumina sequencing also revealed prevalence of various types of pathogenicity islands and virulence proteins in the STP. Most of the potential pathogens and virulence factors were eliminated in the STP, and the removal efficiency mainly depended on oxidation ditch. Compared with sand filtration, magnetic resin seemed to have higher removals in most of the potential pathogens and virulence factors. However, presence of the residual A. butzleri in the final effluent still deserves more concerns. The findings indicate that sewage acts as an important source of environmental pathogens, but STPs can effectively control their spread in the environment. Joint use of the high-throughput sequencing technologies is considered a reliable method for deep and comprehensive overview of environmental bacterial virulence.     

Phyllosphere Bacterial Community of Floating Macrophytes in Paddy Soil Environments as Revealed by Illumina High-Throughput Sequencing

The phyllosphere of floating macrophytes in paddy soil ecosystems, a unique habitat, may support large microbial communities but remains largely unknown. We took Wolffia australiana as a representative floating plant and investigated its phyllosphere bacterial community and the underlying driving forces of community modulation in paddy soil ecosystems using Illumina HiSeq 2000 platform-based 16S rRNA gene sequence analysis. The results showed that the phyllosphere of W. australiana harbored considerably rich communities of bacteria, with Proteobacteria and Bacteroidetes as the predominant phyla. The core microbiome in the phyllosphere contained genera such as Acidovorax, Asticcacaulis, Methylibium, and Methylophilus. Complexity of the phyllosphere bacterial communities in terms of class number and α-diversity was reduced compared to those in corresponding water and soil. Furthermore, the bacterial communities exhibited structures significantly different from those in water and soil. These findings and the following redundancy analysis (RDA) suggest that species sorting played an important role in the recruitment of bacterial species in the phyllosphere. The compositional structures of the phyllosphere bacterial communities were modulated predominantly by water physicochemical properties, while the initial soil bacterial communities had limited impact. Taken together, the findings from this study reveal the diversity and uniqueness of the phyllosphere bacterial communities associated with the floating macrophytes in paddy soil environments.     

Analysis of Hydrocarbon-Contaminated Groundwater Metagenomes as Revealed by High-Throughput Sequencing

The tendency for chlorinated aliphatics and aromatic hydrocarbons to accumulate in environments such as groundwater and sediments poses a serious environmental threat. In this study, the metabolic capacity of hydrocarbon (aromatics and chlorinated aliphatics)-contaminated groundwater in the KwaZulu-Natal province of South Africa has been elucidated for the first time by analysis of pyrosequencing data. The taxonomic data revealed that the metagenomes were dominated by the phylum Proteobacteria (mainly Betaproteobacteria). In addition, Flavobacteriales, Sphingobacteria, Burkholderiales, and Rhodocyclales were the predominant orders present in the individual metagenomes. These orders included microorganisms (Flavobacteria, Dechloromonas aromatica RCB, and Azoarcus) involved in the degradation of aromatic compounds and various other hydrocarbons that were present in the groundwater. Although the metabolic reconstruction of the metagenome represented composite cell networks, the information obtained was sufficient to address questions regarding the metabolic potential of the microbial communities and to correlate the data to the contamination profile of the groundwater. Genes involved in the degradation of benzene and benzoate, heavy metal-resistance mechanisms appeared to provide a survival strategy used by the microbial communities. Analysis of the pyrosequencing-derived data revealed that the metagenomes represent complex microbial communities that have adapted to the geochemical conditions of the groundwater as evidenced by the presence of key enzymes/genes conferring resistance to specific contaminants. Thus, pyrosequencing analysis of the metagenomes provided insights into the microbial activities in hydrocarbon-contaminated habitats.     

Wastewater Treatment Effluent Reduces the Abundance and Diversity of Benthic Bacterial Communities in Urban and Suburban Rivers

In highly urbanized areas, wastewater treatment plant (WWTP) effluent can represent a significant component of freshwater ecosystems. As it is impossible for the composition of WWTP effluent to match the composition of the receiving system, the potential exists for effluent to significantly impact the chemical and biological characteristics of the receiving ecosystem. We assessed the impacts of WWTP effluent on the size, activity, and composition of benthic microbial communities by comparing two distinct field sites in the Chicago metropolitan region: a highly urbanized river receiving effluent from a large WWTP and a suburban river receiving effluent from a much smaller WWTP. At sites upstream of effluent input, the urban and suburban rivers differed significantly in chemical characteristics and in the composition of their sediment bacterial communities. Although effluent resulted in significant increases in inorganic nutrients in both rivers, surprisingly, it also resulted in significant decreases in the population size and diversity of sediment bacterial communities. Tag pyrosequencing of bacterial 16S rRNA genes revealed significant effects of effluent on sediment bacterial community composition in both rivers, including decreases in abundances of Deltaproteobacteria, Desulfococcus, Dechloromonas, and Chloroflexi sequences and increases in abundances of Nitrospirae and Sphingobacteriales sequences. The overall effect of the WWTP inputs was that the two rivers, which were distinct in chemical and biological properties upstream of the WWTPs, were almost indistinguishable downstream. These results suggest that WWTP effluent has the potential to reduce the natural variability that exists among river ecosystems and indicate that WWTP effluent may contribute to biotic homogenization.     

Performance Assessment of Full-Scale Wastewater Treatment Plants Based on Seasonal Variability of Microbial Communities via High-Throughput Sequencing

Microbial communities of activated sludge (AS) play a key role in the performance of wastewater treatment processes. However, seasonal variability of microbial population in varying AS-based processes has been poorly correlated with operation of full-scale wastewater treatment systems (WWTSs). In this paper, significant seasonal variability of AS microbial communities in eight WWTSs located in the city of Guangzhou were revealed in terms of 16S rRNA-based Miseq sequencing. Furthermore, variation redundancy analysis (RDA) demonstrated that the microbial community compositions closely correlated with WWTS operation parameters such as temperature, BOD, NH₄⁺-N and TN. Consequently, support vector regression models which reasonably predicted effluent BOD, SS and TN in WWTSs were established based on microbial community compositions. This work provided an alternative tool for rapid assessment on performance of full-scale wastewater treatment plants.     

Characterization of Bacterial Communities in Sediments Receiving Various Wastewater Effluents with High-Throughput Sequencing Analysis

454 Pyrosequencing was applied to examine bacterial communities in sediment samples collected from a river receiving effluent discharge from rural domestic sewage (RDS) and various factories, including a tannery (TNS), clothing plant (CTS), and button factory (BTS), respectively. For each sample, 4,510 effective sequences were selected and utilized to do the bacterial diversity and abundance analysis, respectively. In total, 1,288, 2,036, 1,800, and 2,150 operational taxonomic units were obtained at 3 % distance cutoff in TNS, CTS, BTS, and RDS, respectively. Bacterial phylotype richness in RDS was higher than the other samples, and TNS had the least richness. The most predominant class in the TNS, CTS, and BTS samples is Betaproteobacteria. Cyanobacteria (no_rank) is the most predominant one in the RDS sample. Circa 31 % sequences in TNS were affiliated with the Rhodocyclales order. In the four samples, Aeromonas, Arcobacter, Clostridium, Legionella, Leptospira, Mycobacterium, Pseudomonas, and Treponema genera containing pathogenic bacteria were detected. Characterization of bacterial communities in sediments from various downstream branches indicated that distinct wastewater effluents have similar potential to reduce the natural variability in river ecosystems and contribute to the river biotic homogenization.     

Deciphering the Diversities of Astroviruses and Noroviruses in Wastewater Treatment Plant Effluents by a High-Throughput Sequencing Method

Although clinical epidemiology lists human enteric viruses to be among the primary causes of acute gastroenteritis in the human population, their circulation in the environment remains poorly investigated. These viruses are excreted by the human population into sewers and may be released into rivers through the effluents of wastewater treatment plants (WWTPs). In order to evaluate the viral diversity and loads in WWTP effluents of the Paris, France, urban area, which includes about 9 million inhabitants (approximately 15% of the French population), the seasonal occurrence of astroviruses and noroviruses in 100 WWTP effluent samples was investigated over 1 year. The coupling of these measurements with a high-throughput sequencing approach allowed the specific estimation of the diversity of human astroviruses (human astrovirus genotype 1 [HAstV-1], HAstV-2, HAstV-5, and HAstV-6), 7 genotypes of noroviruses (NoVs) of genogroup I (NoV GI.1 to NoV GI.6 and NoV GI.8), and 16 genotypes of NoVs of genogroup II (NoV GII.1 to NoV GII.7, NoV GII.9, NoV GII.12 to NoV GII.17, NoV GII.20, and NoV GII.21) in effluent samples. Comparison of the viral diversity in WWTP effluents to the viral diversity found by analysis of clinical data obtained throughout France underlined the consistency between the identified genotypes. However, some genotypes were locally present in effluents and were not found in the analysis of the clinical data. These findings could highlight an underestimation of the diversity of enteric viruses circulating in the human population. Consequently, analysis of WWTP effluents could allow the exploration of viral diversity not only in environmental waters but also in a human population linked to a sewerage network in order to better comprehend viral epidemiology and to forecast seasonal outbreaks.     

High-Throughput Discovery of Mutations in Tef Semi-Dwarfing Genes by Next-Generation Sequencing Analysis

Tef (Eragrostis tef) is a major cereal crop in Ethiopia. Lodging is the primary constraint to increasing productivity in this allotetraploid species, accounting for losses of ∼15–45% in yield each year. As a first step toward identifying semi-dwarf varieties that might have improved lodging resistance, an ∼6× fosmid library was constructed and used to identify both homeologues of the dw3 semi-dwarfing gene of Sorghum bicolor. An EMS mutagenized population, consisting of ∼21,210 tef plants, was planted and leaf materials were collected into 23 superpools. Two dwarfing candidate genes, homeologues of dw3 of sorghum and rht1 of wheat, were sequenced directly from each superpool with 454 technology, and 120 candidate mutations were identified. Out of 10 candidates tested, six independent mutations were validated by Sanger sequencing, including two predicted detrimental mutations in both dw3 homeologues with a potential to improve lodging resistance in tef through further breeding. This study demonstrates that high-throughput sequencing can identify potentially valuable mutations in under-studied plant species like tef and has provided mutant lines that can now be combined and tested in breeding programs for improved lodging resistance.     

Exploring the Sources of Bacterial Spoilers in Beefsteaks by Culture-Independent High-Throughput Sequencing

Microbial growth on meat to unacceptable levels contributes significantly to change meat structure, color and flavor and to cause meat spoilage. The types of microorganisms initially present in meat depend on several factors and multiple sources of contamination can be identified. The aims of this study were to evaluate the microbial diversity in beefsteaks before and after aerobic storage at 4°C and to investigate the sources of microbial contamination by examining the microbiota of carcasses wherefrom the steaks originated and of the processing environment where the beef was handled. Carcass, environmental (processing plant) and meat samples were analyzed by culture-independent high-throughput sequencing of 16S rRNA gene amplicons. The microbiota of carcass swabs was very complex, including more than 600 operational taxonomic units (OTUs) belonging to 15 different phyla. A significant association was found between beef microbiota and specific beef cuts (P<0.01) indicating that different cuts of the same carcass can influence the microbial contamination of beef. Despite the initially high complexity of the carcass microbiota, the steaks after aerobic storage at 4°C showed a dramatic decrease in microbial complexity. Pseudomonas sp. and Brochothrix thermosphacta were the main contaminants, and Acinetobacter, Psychrobacter and Enterobacteriaceae were also found. Comparing the relative abundance of OTUs in the different samples it was shown that abundant OTUs in beefsteaks after storage occurred in the corresponding carcass. However, the abundance of these same OTUs clearly increased in environmental samples taken in the processing plant suggesting that spoilage-associated microbial species originate from carcasses, they are carried to the processing environment where the meat is handled and there they become a resident microbiota. Such microbiota is then further spread on meat when it is handled and it represents the starting microbial association wherefrom the most efficiently growing microbial species take over during storage and can cause spoilage.     

Genomic Diversity and Evolution of Mycobacterium ulcerans Revealed by Next-Generation Sequencing

Mycobacterium ulcerans is the causative agent of Buruli ulcer, the third most common mycobacterial disease after tuberculosis and leprosy. It is an emerging infectious disease that afflicts mainly children and youths in West Africa. Little is known about the evolution and transmission mode of M. ulcerans, partially due to the lack of known genetic polymorphisms among isolates, limiting the application of genetic epidemiology. To systematically profile single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs), we sequenced the genomes of three M. ulcerans strains using 454 and Solexa technologies. Comparison with the reference genome of the Ghanaian classical lineage isolate Agy99 revealed 26,564 SNPs in a Japanese strain representing the ancestral lineage. Only 173 SNPs were found when comparing Agy99 with two other Ghanaian isolates, which belong to the two other types previously distinguished in Ghana by variable number tandem repeat typing. We further analyzed a collection of Ghanaian strains using the SNPs discovered. With 68 SNP loci, we were able to differentiate 54 strains into 13 distinct SNP haplotypes. The average SNP nucleotide diversity was low (average 0.06–0.09 across 68 SNP loci), and 96% of the SNP locus pairs were in complete linkage disequilibrium. We estimated that the divergence of the M. ulcerans Ghanaian clade from the Japanese strain occurred 394 to 529 thousand years ago. The Ghanaian subtypes diverged about 1000 to 3000 years ago, or even much more recently, because we found evidence that they evolved significantly faster than average. Our results offer significant insight into the evolution of M. ulcerans and provide a comprehensive report on genetic diversity within a highly clonal M. ulcerans population from a Buruli ulcer endemic region, which can facilitate further epidemiological studies of this pathogen through the development of high-resolution tools.     

Bacterial Community Dynamics During Nursery Rearing of Pacific White Shrimp ( Litopenaeus vannamei ) Revealed via High-Throughput Sequencing

A 20-day trial was conducted to reveal bacterial community dynamics in a commercial nursery of larval Litopenaeus vannamei larvae. The bacterial communities in the ambient water were profiled by high-throughput sequencing of the V4–V5 hypervariable region of the 16S rRNA gene. The results indicated that the dominant bacterial phyla between the metamorphosis stage and postlarval stage were Bacteroidetes, Proteobacteria, Cyanobacteria, and Firmicutes, representing more than 80.09% of the bacterial operational taxonomic units. The relative abundance among bacterial phyla notably differed between the two stages. The relative abundance of Cyanobacteria was higher in the metamorphosis stage, while that of Bacteroidetes was higher and more stable in the postlarval stage. At the class level, the relative abundance of Sphingobacteriia and Alphaproteobacteria increased markedly in the postlarval stage, while that of Flavobacteriia decreased. Redundancy analysis showed that bacterial composition in the metamorphosis stage was positively correlated with salinity, alkalinity, and pH, while in the postlarval stage, it was positively correlated with ammonium nitrogen and nitrite nitrogen. Thus, microbial community diversity in the nursery phase varies per rearing stage.     

Elevated Atmospheric CO2 Impacts Abundance and Diversity of Nitrogen Cycling Functional Genes in Soil

The concentration of CO₂ in the Earth's atmosphere has increased over the last century. Although this increase is unlikely to have direct effects on soil microbial communities, increased atmospheric CO₂ may impact soil ecosystems indirectly through plant responses. This study tested the hypothesis that exposure of plants to elevated CO₂ would impact soil microorganisms responsible for key nitrogen cycling processes, specifically denitrification and nitrification. We grew trembling aspen (Populus tremuloides) trees in outdoor chambers under ambient (360 ppm) or elevated (720 ppm) levels of CO₂ for 5 years and analyzed the microbial communities in the soils below the trees using quantitative polymerase chain reaction and clone library sequencing targeting the nitrite reductase (nirK) and ammonia monooxygenase (amoA) genes. We observed a more than twofold increase in copy numbers of nirK and a decrease in nirK diversity with CO₂ enrichment, with an increased predominance of Bradyrhizobia-like nirK sequences. We suggest that this dramatic increase in nirK-containing bacteria may have contributed to the significant loss of soil N in the CO₂-treated chambers. Elevated CO₂ also resulted in a significant decrease in copy numbers of bacterial amoA, but no change in archaeal amoA copy numbers. The decrease in abundance of bacterial amoA was likely a result of the loss of soil N in the CO₂-treated chambers, while the lack of response for archaeal amoA supports the hypothesis that physiological differences in these two groups of ammonia oxidizers may enable them to occupy distinct ecological niches and respond differently to environmental change.     

Metagenomic Profiling of Antibiotic Resistance Genes and Mobile Genetic Elements in a Tannery Wastewater Treatment Plant

Antibiotics are often used to prevent sickness and improve production in animal agriculture, and the residues in animal bodies may enter tannery wastewater during leather production. This study aimed to use Illumina high-throughput sequencing to investigate the occurrence, diversity and abundance of antibiotic resistance genes (ARGs) and mobile genetic elements (MGEs) in aerobic and anaerobic sludge of a full-scale tannery wastewater treatment plant (WWTP). Metagenomic analysis showed that Proteobacteria, Firmicutes, Bacteroidetes and Actinobacteria dominated in the WWTP, but the relative abundance of archaea in anaerobic sludge was higher than in aerobic sludge. Sequencing reads from aerobic and anaerobic sludge revealed differences in the abundance of functional genes between both microbial communities. Genes coding for antibiotic resistance were identified in both communities. BLAST analysis against Antibiotic Resistance Genes Database (ARDB) further revealed that aerobic and anaerobic sludge contained various ARGs with high abundance, among which sulfonamide resistance gene sul1 had the highest abundance, occupying over 20% of the total ARGs reads. Tetracycline resistance genes (tet) were highly rich in the anaerobic sludge, among which tet33 had the highest abundance, but was absent in aerobic sludge. Over 70 types of insertion sequences were detected in each sludge sample, and class 1 integrase genes were prevalent in the WWTP. The results highlighted prevalence of ARGs and MGEs in tannery WWTPs, which may deserve more public health concerns.     

Bacterial Diversity and Community Structure in an Aerated Lagoon Revealed by Ribosomal Intergenic Spacer Analyses and 16S Ribosomal DNA Sequencing

We investigated the bacterial community structure in an aerated plug-flow lagoon treating pulp and paper mill effluent. For this investigation, we developed a composite method based on analyses of PCR amplicons containing the ribosomal intergenic spacer (RIS) and its flanking partial 16S rRNA gene. Community percent similarity was determined on the basis of RIS length polymorphism. A community succession was evident in the lagoon, indicated by a progressive community transition through seven sample locations. The most abrupt changes in community structure were associated with a temperature change from 39 to 35°C and with increases in dissolved oxygen. The temporal differences in community structure, based on summer and winter samplings, were greater than the spatial differences during either season. Clone libraries of rDNA-RIS amplicons were constructed from each of three summer samples. Among 90 clones analyzed (30 clones from each sample), 56 phylotypes were distinguished by restriction fragment length polymorphism. Indices of phylotype richness, evenness, and diversity all increased in clone libraries from the beginning to the end of the lagoon. A representative clone of each phylotype was phylogenetically analyzed on the basis of its partial 16S rRNA gene sequence (ca. 450 bp). Phylogenetic analysis confirmed the increase in diversity and further indicated increasing richness of bacterial divisions. Pioneers in the community spatial succession appeared to include thermotolerant, microaerophilic methanol-oxidizing bacteria related to the genus Methylobacillus, as well as thermotolerant, microaerophilic nitrogen-fixing bacteria related to the genus Azospirillum.