Mechanisms of ammonium assimilation by Chlorella vulgaris F1068: Isotope fractionation and proteomic approaches.

Removal of ammonium (NH4(+)-N) by microalgae has evoked interest in wastewater treatment, however, the detailed mechanisms of ammonium assimilation remain mysterious. This study investigated the effects of NH4(+)-N concentration on the removal and biotransformation efficiency by Chlorella vulgaris F1068, and explored the mechanisms by (15)N isotope fractionation and proteome approaches. The results showed NH4(+)-N was efficiently removed (84.8%) by F1068 at 10mgL(-1) of NH4(+)-N. The isotope enrichment factor (ε=-2.37±0.08‰) of (15)N isotope fractionation revealed 47.6% biotransformation at above condition, while 7.0% biotransformation at 4mgL(-1) of NH4(+)-N (ε=-1.63±0.06‰). This was due to the different expression of glutamine synthetase, a key enzyme in ammonium assimilation, which was up-regulated 6.4-fold at proteome level and 18.0-fold at transcription level. The results will provide a better mechanistic understanding of ammonium assimilation by microalgae and this green technology is expected to reduce the burden of NH4(+)-N removal for municipal sewage treatment plants.