Community Composition and Abundance of Anammox Bacteria in Cattail Rhizosphere Sediments at Three Phenological Stages

Abstract

The distribution of anammox bacteria in rhizosphere sediments of cattail (Typha orientalis) at different phenological stages was investigated. Results showed that the number of 16S rRNA gene copies of the anammox bacteria was considerably higher in the rhizosphere sediment than in the nonrhizosphere sediment and control sediment. The abundances of the anammox bacteria exhibited striking temporal variations in the three different cattail phenological stages. In addition, the Chao1 and Shannon H indexes of the anammox bacteria in cattail rhizosphere sediments had evident spatial and temporal variations at different phenological stages. Four anammox genera (Brocadia, Kuenenia, Jettenia, and a new cluster) were detected and had proportions of 34.18, 45.57, 0.63, and 19.62%, respectively. The CCA analysis results indicated that Cu, TN, Pb, and Zn were pivotal factors that affect anammox bacteria composition. The PCoA analysis results indicated that the community structure at the rhizosphere and nonrhizosphere sediments collected on July was relatively specific and was different from sediments collected on other months, suggesting that cattail can influence the community structures of the anammox bacteria at the maturity stage.