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Nitrification is an important step in the nitrogen cycle in soil. The process of complete nitrification may occur through separate organisms [1] or entirely within one organism, as in comammox bacteria. The transformation of ammonia to nitrite is usually the rate limiting step of nitrification.
Nitrifying bacteria are chemolithotrophic organisms that include species of genera such as Nitrosomonas, Nitrosococcus, Nitrobacter, Nitrospina, Nitrospira and Nitrococcus. These bacteria get their energy from the oxidation of inorganic nitrogen compounds. [1] Types include ammonia-oxidizing bacteria (AOB) and nitrite-oxidizing bacteria (NOB).
Comammox (COMplete AMMonia OXidation) is the name attributed to an organism that can convert ammonia into nitrite and then into nitrate through the process of nitrification. [1] Nitrification has traditionally been thought to be a two-step process, where ammonia-oxidizing bacteria and archaea oxidize ammonia to nitrite and then nitrite ...
Nitrite oxidoreductase (NOR or NXR) is an enzyme involved in nitrification.It is the last step in the process of aerobic ammonia oxidation, which is carried out by two groups of nitrifying bacteria: ammonia oxidizers such as Nitrosospira, Nitrosomonas, and Nitrosococcus convert ammonia to nitrite, while nitrite oxidizers such as Nitrobacter and Nitrospira oxidize nitrite to nitrate.
Putrefying bacteria use amino acids or urea as an energy source to decompose dead organisms. In the process, they produce ammonium ions. Nitrifying bacteria then convert this ammonium into nitrate by oxidation, which can then be used by plants to create more proteins thus completing the nitrogen cycle. [6] This process is called nitrification.
The bacteria mediating this process were identified in 1999, and were a great surprise for the scientific community. [2] In the anammox reaction, nitrite and ammonium ions are converted directly into diatomic nitrogen and water. The bacteria that perform the anammox process are genera that belong to the bacterial phylum Planctomycetota.
In the oceans, nitrite-oxidizing bacteria such as Nitrobacter are usually found in close proximity to ammonia-oxidizing bacteria. [11] These two reactions together make up the process of nitrification. The nitrite-oxidation reaction generally proceeds more quickly in ocean waters, and therefore is not a rate-limiting step in nitrification.
The microbial food web refers to the combined trophic interactions among microbes in aquatic environments. These microbes include viruses, bacteria, algae, heterotrophic protists (such as ciliates and flagellates). [1] In aquatic ecosystems, microbial food webs are essential because they form the basis for the cycling of nutrients and energy.