Identification and Detection of Prokaryotic Symbionts in the Ciliate Metopus from Anaerobic Granular Sludge

The aim of the present study was to investigate the prokaryotic community structure of the anaerobic ciliate, Metopus sp. using rRNA sequencing, fluorescence in situ hybridization (FISH), and transmission electron microscopy (TEM). Metopus sp. was physically separated from anaerobic granular sludge in a domestic wastewater treatment plant and anoxically cultivated for 7 d. 16S rRNA gene sequences from the prokaryotes Methanoregula boonei and Clostridium aminobutyricum were abundantly detected in Metopus ciliates. The FISH analysis using the oligonucleotide probes Mg1200b and Cla568 demonstrated that these prokaryotes were localized within Metopus cells. These results identify M. boonei- and C. aminobutyricum-like prokaryotes as novel endosymbionts of Metopus ciliates.