Abstract
High sulfides concentrations can be poisonous to environment because of anthropogenic waste production or natural occurrences. How to elucidate the biological transformation mechanisms of sulfide pollutants in the subtropical marine mangrove ecosystem has gained increased interest. Thus, in the present study, the sulfide biotransformation in subtropical mangroves ecosystem was accurately evaluated using metagenomic sequencing and quantitative polymerase chain reaction analysis. Most abundant genes were related to the organic sulfur transformation. Furthermore, an ecological model of sulfide conversion was constructed. Total phosphorus was the dominant environmental factor that drove the sulfur cycle and microbial communities. We compared mangrove and non-mangrove soils and found that the former enhanced metabolism that was related to sulfate reduction when compared to the latter. Total organic carbon, total organic nitrogen, iron, and available sulfur were the key environmental factors that effectively influenced the dissimilatory sulfate reduction. The taxonomic assignment of dissimilatory sulfate-reducing genes revealed that Desulfobacterales and Chromatiales were mainly responsible for sulfate reduction. Chromatiales were most sensitive to environmental factors. The high abundance of cysE and cysK could contribute to the coping of the microbial community with the toxic sulfide produced by Desulfobacterales. Collectively, these findings provided a theoretical basis for the mechanism of the sulfur cycle in subtropical mangrove ecosystems.
Highlights
During human activities, including the mariculture industry [1] and farming [2], sulfides excessively accumulate and can be poisonous to the environment
This study aims at (1) investigating all genes involved in sulfur cycling, (2) revealing the model of sulfide biotransformation in the subtropical marine mangrove ecosystem, (3) confirming the key microorganisms involved in sulfur cycling, and (4) unravelling the effect of key environmental factors on sulfate reduction
This study demonstrated that the pathway of organic sulfur transformation was the most dynamic activity in the subtropical marine mangrove ecosystem
Summary
During human activities, including the mariculture industry [1] and farming [2], sulfides excessively accumulate and can be poisonous to the environment. Sulfides reach up to 20 mM in marine mangrove sediments [4]. Many methods, such as using chemical for the oxidation of sulfide by nitrate [5] and algal [6] methods, deal with sulfide toxicity, and the elucidation of the mechanism of microorganisms in the transformation of sulfide pollutants has gained increased interest. The high occurrence of this phenomenon implies that, as a tightly coupled pathway by sulfate-reducing bacteria (SRB), sulfate reduction is inadequate, and environmental conditions can affect microorganisms. The dissimilatory sulfate reduction is primarily driven by SRB, and the complete absence of oxygen or lowoxygen condition (
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