Transcriptome analysis expands underlying mechanisms of quorum sensing mediating heterotrophic nitrification-aerobic denitrification process at low temperature.

Quorum sensing (QS) could regulate the behavior of microbial communities and help them resist adverse low-temperature environments. A newly isolated heterotrophic nitrification-aerobic denitrification (HN-AD) bacterium, strain YB1107, exhibited strong tolerance to harsh cold environments, removing 93.5 % of ammonia within 36 h and achieving a maximum specific growth rate of 0.28 h at 10 °C. Strain YB1107 secreted large amounts of N-butanoyl-L-homoserine or N-octanoyl-L-homoserine lactones in response to cold stimuli. The add-back experiments indicated that these two signaling molecules jointly manipulated microbial physiological behavior by improving ammonia oxidation and biofilm formation, while inhibiting aerobic denitrification. The transcriptome analysis revealed that QS systems enhanced the cold resistance of HN-AD bacteria by promoting nitrogen assimilation and reducing dissimilation through regulating related genes. This study provided new molecular insights into how QS mediated HN-AD at low temperatures and laid the foundation for the potential applications of psychrophilic HN-AD bacteria in wastewater treatment.