Genome-Wide Transcriptional Responses of Nitrosomonas europaea to cadmium

Heavy metals have been postulated as significant nitrification inhibitor in wastewater treatment plant. The effect of heavy metals such as Cd2+, Cu2+ and Hg2+ to nitrifying bacterium, Nitrosomonas europaea, was studied in pseudo-steady state batch reactor. Under incubation of Nitrosomonas europaea with 1 ?M CdCl2 for 1 hour, transcripts for 66 of 2460 genes were found at high level, yet transcripts of 50 genes were found at low level. Mercury resistance genes (merACDPT) showed 277-fold up regulation. Keywords: cadmium, stress response, global transcription, mercury resistance genes, merA, The 1 uM CdCl2 caused more than 50 % inhibition in physiological response for 1 hour incubation. Transcriptional levels of the cells inhibited by cadmium were compared with the cells under control condition.