effect of maize silage as co-substrate for swine manure on the bacterial community structure in biogas plants

The qualitative and quantitative changes in the bacterial community composition in two mesophilic, commercially used biogas plants were monitored by denaturing gradient gel electrophoresis (DGGE) and real-time PCR. The main objective was to evaluate the influence of the co-substrate maize silage on total bacteria and some selected bacterial groups by comparing full-scale reactors fed solely with pig manure or additionally with maize silage. DGGE fingerprints reflected shifts in the bacterial community structure associated with maize silage as co-substrate and the real-time PCR results showed clear changes in the quantitative composition of the bacterial consortia of each fermenter. A clear dominance of Clostridia in all surveyed fermenters and considerably lower abundance of Bacteroidetes in the biogas plant fed with maize silage was shown.