Enrichment of phosphate-accumulating organisms (PAOs) in a microfluidic model biofilm system by mimicking a typical aerobic granular sludge feast/famine regime

A sample was taken from the aeration tank of the municipal wastewater treatment plant Weinheim (Altau 10, 69469 Weinheim, Germany). Shotgun metagenome sequencing was performed on this sample. Microfluidic cultivation reactors were inoculated with this sample to cultivate biofilms. The cultivation took place under cyclic alternation of oxic famine and anoxic feast phases. After 4, 18 and 28 days, samples of the biofilm were taken with the help of a robotic device and sequenced using amplicon sequencing.