Population dynamics of phage-host system of Microlunatus phosphovorus indigenous in activated sludge

Monitoring of the phage-host system of Microlunatus phosphovorus indigenous in activated sludge was attempted. A laboratory-scale activated sludge process was operated for 5 weeks with synthetic wastewater. The phage-host system population in the process was monitored by plaque assay and FISH methods at every 3 days. During the process operation, the phage-host system populations were more or less steady, except for 1 week in the middle of the operation. In that period, initially M. phosphovorus decreased significantly and its lytic bacteriophages increased, and then M. phosphovorus increased back to its original level while its lytic bacteriophages decreased. This observation suggests that lytic bacteriophages should be considered as one of the biological factors affecting the bacterial population dynamics in activated sludge processes.