Integrating Microbial Ecology and Sustainability: Linking Agricultural Waste Gas Streams to Microbial Community Shifts in a Photobioreactor
- 1Karlsruhe Institute of Technology
Abstract
Photobioreactors (PBRs) coupled to animal housing offer potential for mitigating gaseous emissions such as CO2 and NH3 while simultaneously producing biomass. Here, we present a time-resolved characterization of microbial community dynamics, with a focus on the genetic potential for carbon and nitrogen metabolism. Using a cone-shaped, helical PBR cultivating Arthrospira platensis (Spirulina) and supplied with exhaust air from a chicken house, we characterized microbial communities over continuous exhaust-air exposure and periodic biomass harvesting. Microbiome and gene-centric profiling revealed temporal variation in community composition and in the representation of genes associated with carbon and nitrogen metabolism. Cycle-based dissolved inorganic nitrogen balances showed that the decrease in dissolved inorganic nitrogen was only partially recovered in harvested biomass, while ammonia-oxidizing microorganisms were associated with structured, low-light niches. These observations indicate ammonia-oxidizing potential but do not establish a quantitatively relevant nitrification flux. Structured carrier matrices provided attached-growth niches harboring microbial populations underrepresented in the circulating suspension, while pre-colonized carriers facilitated biomass development during re-inoculation. Overall, our results show that coupling PBRs to agricultural exhaust streams can support biomass production while sustaining spatially structured microbial communities with taxonomic and functional potential. These findings may inform their further development for emission mitigation and circular biomass production.
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BibTeX
@misc{martin2026integrating,
title = {{Integrating Microbial Ecology and Sustainability: Linking Agricultural Waste Gas Streams to Microbial Community Shifts in a Photobioreactor}},
author = {M. Velaz Martin and T. Glockow and L. Meisch and J. Vollmers and A.-K. Kaster and K. S. Rabe and C. M. Niemeyer},
howpublished = {bioRxiv},
year = {2026},
month = nov,
doi = {10.64898/2026.11.06.764810},
url = {https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.64898/2026.11.06.764810v1},
note = {CC BY-NC-ND},
}
RIS
TY - UNPB
TI - Integrating Microbial Ecology and Sustainability: Linking Agricultural Waste Gas Streams to Microbial Community Shifts in a Photobioreactor
AU - M. Velaz Martin
AU - T. Glockow
AU - L. Meisch
AU - J. Vollmers
AU - A.-K. Kaster
AU - K. S. Rabe
AU - C. M. Niemeyer
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/11/06
PB - bioRxiv
DO - 10.64898/2026.11.06.764810
UR - https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.64898/2026.11.06.764810v1
AB - Photobioreactors (PBRs) coupled to animal housing offer potential for mitigating gaseous emissions such as CO2 and NH3 while simultaneously producing biomass. Here, we present a time-resolved characterization of microbial community dynamics, with a focus on the genetic potential for carbon and nitrogen metabolism. Using a cone-shaped, helical PBR cultivating Arthrospira platensis (Spirulina) and supplied with exhaust air from a chicken house, we characterized microbial communities over continuous exhaust-air exposure and periodic biomass harvesting. Microbiome and gene-centric profiling revealed temporal variation in community composition and in the representation of genes associated with carbon and nitrogen metabolism. Cycle-based dissolved inorganic nitrogen balances showed that the decrease in dissolved inorganic nitrogen was only partially recovered in harvested biomass, while ammonia-oxidizing microorganisms were associated with structured, low-light niches. These observations indicate ammonia-oxidizing potential but do not establish a quantitatively relevant nitrification flux. Structured carrier matrices provided attached-growth niches harboring microbial populations underrepresented in the circulating suspension, while pre-colonized carriers facilitated biomass development during re-inoculation. Overall, our results show that coupling PBRs to agricultural exhaust streams can support biomass production while sustaining spatially structured microbial communities with taxonomic and functional potential. These findings may inform their further development for emission mitigation and circular biomass production.
ER -