Response of the microbial community to salt stress and its stratified effect in constructed wetlands

Nitrogen removal in constructed wetlands (CWs) may be inhibited by salinity. The clarification of the response of microbial community to salt stress is a premise for developing strategies to improve nitrogen removal efficiency in CWs under saline conditions. Results showed that the ammonia nitrogen (NH4+-N), nitrate nitrogen (NO3--N), and total nitrogen (TN) removal percentages significantly (p < 0.05) decreased in CWs with increasing salinity. The structure and abundance of the microbial community varied with different salinity levels and sampling depths in CWs. Compared with a non-saline condition, the abundances of some bacteria with a denitrification function (e.g., Arthrobacter) significantly (p < 0.05) decreased in CWs under saline conditions (i.e., EC of 15 and 30 mS/cm). Aerobic bacteria (e.g., Sphingomonas) exhibited more abundance in soil and upper gravel samples in CWs than those in bottom gravel samples, while the abundance of some denitrifying bacteria (e.g., Thauera and Azoarcus) was significantly (p < 0.05) higher in bottom gravel samples compared with soil and upper gravel samples, respectively. This study provides both microbiological evidence for explaining the impact of salt stress on nitrogen removal in CWs and scientific reference for developing enhanced strategies to improve the nitrogen removal capacity of CWs.

Automated summary

The removal of nitrogen in constructed wetlands may be hindered by salinity. The microbial community's response to salt stress varied with different saline conditions and sampling depths in the wetlands. Some bacteria with denitrification functions decreased in abundance under saline conditions, while aerobic bacteria showed higher abundance in certain samples.