Ecological Differentiation of Accumulibacter in EBPR Reactors

The role of “Candidatus Accumulibacter phosphatis” in enhanced biological phosphorus removal (EBPR) at both lab-scale and full-scale has been well established. However, recent studies have provided evidence for distinct differentiation among populations, or “Types”, of Accumulibacter. These Types appear to have different physiological characteristics and are sometimes morphologically distinct, suggesting that they may even constitute distinct species. In the present study we explored the population structure and ecophysiology of Accumulibacter-related bacteria in EBPR systems operated in three different laboratories. As part of this work, two new fluorescent in situ hybridization (FISH) probes were developed that can differentiate and visualize two Accumulibacter Types in lab-scale reactors to assist in future investigations into metabolic differences between these Accumulibacter populations.