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Applied and Environmental Microbiology, April 2005, p. 1923-1930, Vol. 71, No. 4
0099-2240/05/$08.00+0     doi:10.1128/AEM.71.4.1923-1930.2005
Copyright © 2005, American Society for Microbiology. All Rights Reserved.

Biphasic Behavior of Anammox Regulated by Nitrite and Nitrate in an Estuarine Sediment

Mark Trimmer,^1* Joanna C. Nicholls,¹ Nicholas Morley,¹ Christian A. Davies,¹ and John Aldridge²

School of Biological Sciences, Queen Mary, University of London, London,¹ Centre for Environment Fisheries and Aquaculture Sciences, Lowestoft, United Kingdom²

Received 29 July 2004/ Accepted 25 October 2004

The production of N₂ gas via anammox was investigated in sediment slurries at in situ NO₂^– concentrations in the presence and absence of NO₃^–. With single enrichment above 10 µM ¹⁴NO₂^– or ¹⁴NO₃^– and ¹⁵NH₄⁺, anammox activity was always linear (P < 0.05), in agreement with previous findings. In contrast, anammox exhibited a range of activity below 10 µM NO₂^– or NO₃^–, including an elevated response at lower concentrations. With 100 µM NO₃^–, no significant transient accumulation of NO₂^– could be measured, and the starting concentration of NO₂^– could therefore be regulated. With dual enrichment (1 to 20 µM NO₂^– plus 100 µM NO₃^–), there was a pronounced nonlinear response in anammox activity. Maximal activity occurred between 2 and 5 µM NO₂^–, but the amplitude of this peak varied across the study (November 2003 to June 2004). Anammox accounted for as much as 82% of the NO₂^– added at 1 µM in November 2003 but only for 15% in May 2004 and for 26 and 5% of the NO₂^– added at 5 µM for these two months, respectively. Decreasing the concentration of NO₃^– but holding NO₂^– at 5 µM decreased the significance of anammox as a sink for NO₂^–. The behavior of anammox was explored by use of a simple anammox-denitrification model, and the concept of a biphasic system for anammox in estuarine sediments is proposed. Overall, anammox is likely to be regulated by the availability of NO₃^– and NO₂^– and the relative size or activity of the anammox population.

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* Corresponding author. Mailing address: School of Biological Sciences, Queen Mary, University of London, London E1 4NS, United Kingdom. Phone: 0044 (0)20 7882 3007. Fax: 0044 (0)20 8983 0973. E-mail: m.trimmer{at}qmul.ac.uk.

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Applied and Environmental Microbiology, April 2005, p. 1923-1930, Vol. 71, No. 4
0099-2240/05/$08.00+0     doi:10.1128/AEM.71.4.1923-1930.2005
Copyright © 2005, American Society for Microbiology. All Rights Reserved.

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