Comparing results of cultured and uncultured biological methods used in biological phosphorus removal

Increasing attention has been paid to phosphate-accumulating organisms (PAOs) for their important role in biological phosphorus removal. In this study, microbial communities of PAOs cultivated under different carbon sources (sewage, glucose, and sodium acetate) were investigated and compared through culture-dependent and culture-independent methods, respectively. The results obtained using denaturing gradient gel electrophoresis (DGGE) of polymerase chain reaction-amplified 16S rDNA fragments revealed that the diversity of bacteria in a sewage-fed reactor (1#) was much higher than in a glucose-fed one (2#) and a sodium acetate-fed one (3#); there were common PAOs in three reactors fed by different carbon sources. Five strains were separated from three systems by using a phosphate-rich medium; they were from common bacteria isolated and three isolates could not be found in DGGE profile at all. Two isolates had good phosphorus removal ability. When the microbial diversity was studied, the molecular biological method was better than the culture-dependent one. When phosphorus removal characteristics were investigated, culture-dependent approach was more effective. Thus a combination of two methods is necessary to have a comprehensive view of PAOs.