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The effect of oxytetracycline (OTC) on anaerobic ammonium oxidation (anammox) performance and the evolution of anammox consortia under OTC stress were analyzed in this study. Meanwhile, the level of resistance genes under OTC stress was monitored for the first time in the anammox system. The nitrogen removal capacity of anammox reactor was almost deprived within three weeks under the stress of 2 mg L −1 OTC, accompanied by a significant reduction of specific anammox activity of 81.3% and heme c content of 50.1%. However, the abundance of hydrazine synthase gene was adversely affected, with a loss of 29.7%. The efflux pump antibiotic resistance genes tetA , tetB , and tetC and the enzymatic modification gene tetX were first detected in anammox mixed culture. The abundance of tetA was increased from 1.03 to 2.51%. The ratios of tetB and tetC doubled, while there was no obvious change in the ratios of tetX . Therefore, it can be inferred that anammox microorganisms resisted the biotoxicity of OTC via efflux pumping mechanism. After the withdrawal of OTC from the influent, the nitrogen removal capacity of anammox reactor recovered, and the abundance of resistance genes declined gradually. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Given the increasing use of nanoscale zero-valent iron (NZVI) particles for environmental remediation and wastewater treatment, their potential impact on anaerobic ammonium oxidation (anammox) bacteria was investigated in this study using anammox sludge. Batch assays showed that NZVI concentrations up to 200 mg L −1 did not affect anammox activity, reactive oxygen species production, and cell membrane integrity. The nitrogen removal efficiency of the continuous-flow reactor fluctuated in the presence of 20 or 50 mg L −1 NZVI, but it could return to normal over time, even at 200 mg L −1 NZVI. 16S rDNA-based high-throughput sequencing indicated that although the presence of 10, 20, 50, and 200 mg L −1 NZVI to some extent affected microbial composition, the anammox bacteria ( Candidatus Kuenenia ) never lost its dominance. The abundance of gene families that are related to the assimilation and utilization of iron was down-regulated in response to the stress of high-level NZVI. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The anaerobic ammonium oxidation (anammox) process has the advantages of a high nitrogen removal rate, low operational cost, and small footprint and has been successfully implemented to treat high-content ammonium wastewater. However, very little is known about the toxicity of the heavy metal element Ni(II) to the anammox process. In this study, the short- and long-term effects of Ni(II) on the anammox process in an upflow anaerobic sludge blanket (UASB) reactor were revealed. The results of the short-term batch test showed that the half maximal inhibitory concentration (IC 50) of Ni(II) on anammox biomass was 14.6 mg L−1. A continuous-flow experiment was performed for 150 days of operation, and the results illustrated that after domestication, the achieved nitrogen removal efficiency was up to 93±0.03% at 10 mg L−1 Ni(II). The settling velocity, specific anammox activity and EPS content decreased as the Ni(II) concentration increased. Nevertheless, the content of heme c increased as the Ni(II) increased. These results indicate that short-term exposure to Ni(II) has an adverse impact on anammox process, but the anammox system could tolerate 10 mg L−1 Ni(II) stress after acclimation during continuous-flow operation for 150 days. High-throughput sequencing results indicated that the presence of Ni(II) had an impact on the microbial community composition in the anammox reactor, especially Candidatus Kuenenia. At Ni(II) concentrations of 0-10 mg L−1, the relative abundance of Candidatus Kuenenia decreased from 36.23% to 28.46%. • The IC50 of Ni(II) on anammox biomass was 14.64 mg L−1 in short-term assay. • The effect of Ni(II) on substrate removal kinetic behavior of anammox was studied. • The long-term effects of Ni(II) in anammox UASB reactor were evaluated. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Metal and metal oxide nanoparticles (NPs) show differences in antimicrobial activity due to different chemical and physical properties. Using copper as a representative example, this study compared the NP effects on anaerobic ammonium oxidation (anammox) bacteria in wastewater treatment. Long-term exposure to 5 mgCu L −1 CuNPs reduced the physiological activity and abundance of anammox bacteria, thereby causing deterioration of reactor performance. However, anammox granules exhibited stronger resistance and resilience to perturbation by 1–160 mgCu L −1 CuONPs, and no adverse effects on performance were observed. Moreover, the level of Cu(II) released from NPs in the influent exhibited good correlations with variations of the community structure and sludge properties. Therefore, the effects of Cu-based NPs on anammox sludge properties are dependent on their forms and levels, and their discrepant effects are partially attributed to their ability to release ionic copper. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The increasing use of engineered metal oxide nanoparticles (MONPs) in consumer products raises great concerns about their environmental impacts, but their potential impacts on anaerobic ammonium oxidation (anammox) process in wastewater treatment remain unclear. In this study, the presence of MONPs (1, 50, 200 mg L −1 ) exhibited no visible effects on the nitrogen removal performance of anammox reactors, but high levels (200 mg L −1 ) of SiO 2 NPs, Al 2 O 3 NPs and CeO 2 NPs had a distinct effect on shaping the anammox community. Long-term exposure of MONPs caused different responses in the relative abundance of Ca. Kuenenia , the level of functional gene Hzs A and the activities of three key enzymes involved in anammox metabolism, but no significant inhibition effects on specific anammox activity were detected. Overall, the effects of MONPs on anammox community structure and sludge properties depended on their types and levels and followed the order SiO 2  > CeO 2  > Al 2 O 3  > TiO 2 . [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Magnetic nanoparticles (NPs) have been widely applied in environmental remediation, biomass immobilization and wastewater treatment, but their potential impact on anaerobic ammonium oxidation (anammox) biomass remains unknown. In this study, the short-term and long-term impacts of maghemite NPs (MHNPs) on the flocculent sludge wasted from a high-rate anammox reactor were investigated. Batch assays showed that the presence of MHNPs up to 200 mg L −1 did not affect anammox activity, reactive oxygen species production, or cell membrane integrity. Moreover, long-term addition of 1–200 mg L −1 MHNPs had no adverse effects on reactor performance. Notably, the specific anammox activity, the abundance of hydrazine synthase structural genes and the content of extracellular polymeric substance were increased with elevated MHNP concentrations. Meanwhile, the community structure was shifted to higher abundance of Candidatus Kuenenia indicated by high-throughput sequencing. Therefore, MHNPs could be applied to enhance anammox flocculent sludge due to their favorable biocompatibility. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

The increasing use of engineered nanoparticles (NPs) poses an emerging challenge to biological wastewater treatment. The long-term impact of CuNPs on anaerobic ammonium oxidation (anammox) process was firstly investigated in this study. The nitrogen removal capacity of anammox reactor was nearly deprived within 30 days under the stress of 5.0 mg L −1 CuNPs and the relative abundance of anammox bacteria (Ca. Kuenenia ) was decreased from 29.59% to 17.53%. Meanwhile, copper resistance genes associated with the Cus, Cop and Pco systems were enriched to eliminate excess intracellular copper. After the withdrawal of CuNPs from the influent, the nitrogen removal capacity of anammox biomass recovered completely within 70 days. Overall, anammox biomass showed susceptibility, resistance and resilience to the stress of CuNPs. Therefore, the potential impacts of ENPs on anammox-based processes should be of great concern. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]

Given the prospective application of anaerobic ammonium oxidation (anammox)-based processes in treating the ammonium-rich and phosphate-containing wastewaters, the effects of phosphate on anammox process were investigated considering the roles of phosphate forms and biomass geometry in this study. Batch experiments showed that phosphate lower than 155 mg P L −1 stimulated the specific anammox activity (SAA) of granules or flocs, whereas 310 mg P L −1 phosphate inhibited the SAA by 10% and the inhibitory effects were further enhanced with phosphate concentrations increasing. The half-maximal inhibitory concentrations of anammox granules and flocs were estimated as 1664.7 ± 114.7 and 1205.9 ± 77.5 mg P L −1 , respectively. The inhibitory effect may be mainly attributed to the dihydrogen phosphate ion (H 2 PO 4 − ) in weakly basic conditions. However, when the influent phosphate level of the granular sludge reactor gradually increased from 2 to 500 mg P L −1 , no adverse effects on the nitrogen removal performance were observed during a 195-day operation. The microbial community diversity and the relative abundance of anammox bacteria were reduced, but no shift in dominant anammox strain was recorded by high throughput sequencing. These results will trigger a rational reevaluation regarding the effects of inorganic phosphate on anammox process. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]