Extremely Halophilic Biohydrogen Producing Microbial Communities from High-Salinity Soil and Salt Evaporation Pond

• Main Authors: Dyah Asri Handayani Taroepratjeka, Tsuyoshi Imai, Prapaipid Chairattanamanokorn, Alissara Reungsang
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Published: MDPI AG 2021-06-01
• Series: Fuels
• Subjects: high-throughput sequencing; <i>Halanaerobium fermentans</i>; extreme halophiles; biohydrogen
• Online Access: https://www.mdpi.com/2673-3994/2/2/14

Extreme halophiles offer the advantage to save on the costs of sterilization and water for biohydrogen production from lignocellulosic waste after the pretreatment process with their ability to withstand extreme salt concentrations. This study identifies the dominant hydrogen-producing genera and species among the acclimatized, extremely halotolerant microbial communities taken from two salt-damaged soil locations in Khon Kaen and one location from the salt evaporation pond in Samut Sakhon, Thailand. The microbial communities’ V3–V4 regions of 16srRNA were analyzed using high-throughput amplicon sequencing. A total of 345 operational taxonomic units were obtained and the high-throughput sequencing confirmed that <i>Firmicutes</i> was the dominant phyla of the three communities. <i>Halanaerobium fermentans</i> and <i>Halanaerobacter lacunarum</i> were the dominant hydrogen-producing species of the communities. Spatial proximity was not found to be a determining factor for similarities between these extremely halophilic microbial communities. Through the study of the microbial communities, strategies can be developed to increase biohydrogen molar yield.