Screening for phosphate accumulating bacteria isolated from activated sludge

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Abstract
The individual phosphate uptake properties of various bacteria found in the biomass of a pilot plant designed for enhanced biological phosphate removal from wastewater were studied. Following pure culture study it was observed that Bacillus cereus can absorb 0.45 pg of phosphate during the growth phase. During the stationary phase, B. cereus and Pseudomonas cepacia absorb, respectively, 0.08 and 0.01 pg of phosphate to maintain their energy metabolism. Since Acinetobacter plays an important role in phosphate removal, the effect of acetate, the preferred growth substrate of this strain, was studied. In a meat-extract medium without acetate, phosphate accumulation by A. lwoffi is .apprx. 30 mg .cntdot. l-1 of culture. In a medium with a heavy concentration of acetate, a pure culture of A. lwoffi with the same bacterial concentration consumes 4 times as much phosphate. EM observations showed that the bacteria stored the phosphate in the form of granules in the cytoplasm.