Anammox (anaerobic ammonium oxidation), which is a reaction that oxidizes ammonium to dinitrogen gas using nitrite as the electron acceptor under anoxic conditions, was an important discovery in the nitrogen cycle. The reaction is mediated by a specialized group of planctomycete-like bacteria that were first discovered in man-made ecosystems. Subsequently, many studies have reported on the ubiquitous distribution of anammox bacteria in various natural habitats, including anoxic marine sediments and water columns, freshwater sediments and water columns, terrestrial ecosystems and some special ecosystems, such as petroleum reservoirs. Previous studies have estimated that the anammox process is responsible for 50% of the marine nitrogen loss. Recently, the anammox process was reported to account for 9–40% and 4–37% of the nitrogen loss in inland lakes and agricultural soils respectively. These findings indicate the great potential for the anammox process to occur in freshwater and terrestrial ecosystems. The distribution of different anammox bacteria and their contribution to nitrogen loss have been described in different natural habitats, demonstrating that the anammox process is strongly influenced by the local environmental conditions. The present mini-review summarizes the current knowledge of the ecological distribution of anammox bacteria, their contribution to nitrogen loss in various natural ecosystems and the effects of major influential factors on the anammox process.
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Conference Article|
November 21 2011
Anaerobic ammonium oxidation (anammox) in different natural ecosystems
Bao-lan Hu;
Bao-lan Hu
1Department of Environmental Engineering, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou 310058, China
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Li-dong Shen;
Li-dong Shen
1Department of Environmental Engineering, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou 310058, China
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Xiang-yang Xu;
Xiang-yang Xu
1Department of Environmental Engineering, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou 310058, China
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Ping Zheng
Ping Zheng
1
1Department of Environmental Engineering, Zhejiang University, Hangzhou 310058, China
1To whom correspondence should be addressed (email pzheng@zju.edu.cn).
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Publisher: Portland Press Ltd
Received:
August 17 2011
Online ISSN: 1470-8752
Print ISSN: 0300-5127
© The Authors Journal compilation © 2011 Biochemical Society
2011
Biochem Soc Trans (2011) 39 (6): 1811–1816.
Article history
Received:
August 17 2011
Citation
Bao-lan Hu, Li-dong Shen, Xiang-yang Xu, Ping Zheng; Anaerobic ammonium oxidation (anammox) in different natural ecosystems. Biochem Soc Trans 1 December 2011; 39 (6): 1811–1816. doi: https://doi.org/10.1042/BST20110711
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