Development of quantitative PCR for the detection of Alkalilimnicola ehrlichii, Thioalkalivibrio sulfidiphilus and Thioalkalibacter halophilus in gas biodesulfurization processes

Chemolithoautotrophic sulfur-oxidizing bacteria (SOB) are crucial key players in biotechnological processes to remove hydrogen sulfide from sour gas streams. Several different haloalkaliphilic SOB have been detected and isolated from lab- and full-scale facilities, which all performed differently considering end product yields (sulfur and sulfate) and conversion rates. Understanding and regulating bacterial community dynamics in biodesulfurization processes will enable optimization of the process operation. We developed quantitative PCR (qPCR) assays to quantify haloalkaliphilic sulfur-oxidizing gammaproteobacterial species Alkalilimnicola ehrlichii, Thioalkalivibrio sulfidiphilus, and Thioalkalibacter halophilus that dominate bacterial communities of biodesulfurization lab- and full-scale installations at haloalkaline conditions. The specificity and PCR efficiency of novel primer sets were evaluated using pure cultures of these target species. We further validated the qPCR assays by quantification of target organisms in five globally distributed full-scale biodesulfurization installations. The qPCR assays perform a sensitive and accurate quantification of Alkalilimnicola ehrlichii, Thioalkalivibrio sulfidiphilus and Thioalkalibacter halophilus, thus providing rapid and valuable insights into process performance and SOB growth dynamics in gas biodesulfurization systems. ELECTRONIC SUPPLEMENTARY MATERIAL: The online version of this article (10.1186/s13568-019-0826-1) contains supplementary material, which is available to authorized users.