Metabolism of low molecular weight organic compounds by sulfate-reducing bacteria in a Delaware salt marsh.

Oxidation of acetate, lactate, pyruvate, and ethanol to CO2 in anaerobic salt marsh sediments was rapid, with the oxidation rate being significantly inhibited (60-90% decrease) in the presence of 2 mM sodium molybdate, an inhibitor of sulfate-reducing bacteria (SRB). 2-Bromoethanesulfonic acid (BES), an inhibitor of methanogenic bacteria, generally had no effect on the oxidation rate. Acetate was the only intermediate product detected in the oxidation of lactate and ethanol. Competition studies with lactate, acetate, and ethanol indicated that the preferred order of substrate utilization was lactate, then acetate, then ethanol. The turnover times of these three compounds in salt marsh sediments via the combined CO2 plus acetate pool was rapid (10-13 hours) with a two- to threefold increase in the turnover time in the presence of molybdate. These results strongly suggest that SRB play a major role in the terminal metabolism of low molecular weight organic compounds in anaerobic salt marsh sediment.