Characterization of rhizosphere prokaryotic diversity in a horizontal subsurface flow constructed wetland using a PCR cloning-sequencing based approach

Performance of biological wastewater treatment systems may be related to the composition and activity of microbial populations they contain. However, little information is known regarding microbial community inhabiting these ecosystems. The purpose of this study was to investigate archaeal and bacterial diversity, using cultivation-independent molecular techniques, in a constructed wetland receiving domestic wastewater. Two 16S rRNA gene libraries were constructed using total genomic DNA and amplified by PCR using primers specific for archaeal and bacterial domains. A high microbial diversity was detected. The Proteobacteria phylum is the most abundant and diversified phylogenetic group representing 31.3 % of the OTUs, followed by the Bacteroidetes (14.8 %), Planctomycetales (13.8 %), Actinobacteria (12 %), and Chloroflexi (8.2 %). Sequences affiliated with minor phylogenetic divisions such as the TM7, Nitrospira, OP10, and BRC1 are represented by < 6 % of total OTUs. The Archaea domain was represented by the Thaumarchaeota phylum dominated by the Candidatus Nitrososphaera genus.