- [Narrator] Georgia Tech researches,
got a really big surprise when they looked
at good bacteria that helped clean fish filth
from the water at Georgia Aquarium.
The filth starts out as poo.
- Everything produce waste.
You know,
we produce waste the fish are going to produce waste,
but they don't have a bathroom to go in to.
So or them,
somehow we're gonna have remove that waste.
- The first thing we have to do is take that water
from the aquarium and there's two methods that we do that.
We have surface skimmers that pull about,
about 70,
60% of the water and the rest of it comes
from bottom sumps and all that gets mixed up
and then we run it through two separate loops,
the first look would be through protein skimming.
- [Narrator] Protein skimming,
getting out chunks and bits
and there are many filtrations after that.
- [Eric Hall] All of our filtrations methods,
are very closely mimicking something that occurs in nature
for example our sand filtration is designed to,
to mimic water as it comes up on the beach
and percolates down through the sand
and the chemical traps particles.
- [Narrator] And some bacteria already break down stuff
in the tank that forms form the waste like ammonia
and nitrites,
but those bacteria's weren't part
Of the latest surprising study.
The bacteria in the study do denitrification,
which comes further down the line.
- After the sand filters,
that's when it goes into the sulfur denitrification.
- [Narrator] In denitrification,
which is what the scientists studied.
Bacteria were the water of nitrates.
Nitrates are toxic if they accumulate in high levels.
- Well if left unchecked,
those who accumulate and those will lead
to other biological activities that can be detrimental
to the animals.
- [Narrator] So how does bacterial denitrification work?
- In a ways it's set up in most aquariums systems,
is the use of denitrification powers,
that remove the nitrates,
which is a primary component of the waste.
- [Narrator] The bacteria live in this blue towers,
which the waters also passes through.
The bacteria are anaerobic,,
meaning that they don't breath oxygen the way that we do.
Instead they breath the nitrate to break it down,
while the eat sulfur.
- [Andrew Burns] These bacteria eat,
they're basically eating sulfur compounds
and breathing nitrogen compounds.
So the nitrogen compounds are the main component
of the waste that's coming from the fish.
So these nitrogen compounds are then broken down
by breathing into nitrogen gas.
- [Narrator] So Georgia Aquarium,
knew that bacteria were doing their job,
but they didn't know exactly,
what bacteria made up the bacterial colonies in the system.
This is where the surprise come in.
- So we knew that there are bacteria that are hard at work,
in our habitats we don't know,
we didn't know bout them,
we didn't know who was there.
We didn't know what they're were doing.
- We know things work,
but we don't necessarily know why on a bacterial level
and a microbiology level.
We're looking at that so I wasn't quite sure what
to expect as far as I,
'cause you know as we discover,
nothing's ever simple as what you think
- [Narrator] Georgia tech scientist's,
Zoe Prattte,
took samples of the bacterial colonies in those blue towers
to analyze their genome's.
- [Zoe Pratte] I took it back to our lab
and I did DNA stractions,
I sequence the DNA and then I handed over to co-authors Cory
and Andrew and they did all the bio informatics
on this paper and put it to get into a story.
- [Narrator] To researchers had expected pretty much,
that the bacterial colonies would be visibly less diverse,
than those found in nature,
but the researchers were pleasantly surprised.
- We expected only one bacteria to dominate
or that's what was thought and that's not true.
There's a huge community that contributes
to the removal of nitrating.
- Interestingly,
is very similar to what we'd see in the ocean.
I think what's surprising about that is,
we think of the ocean as a much more dynamic system
and this is very close off.
The only input is coming from food,
whatever bacteria might be attached to the actual fish,
and the whales when they come in,
so to see that we got the same sort of broad diversity
of multiple species that are found trough out the ocean,
were very interesting.
- [Narrator] The anaerobic bacteria,
in the samples from Georgia Aquariums cleaning towers,
were virtually Indistinguishable
from those found in applicable marine environments.
That's great news,
for Georgia aquariums goal of recreating ocean water
- The anerobic study is also trying
to closely mimic something that occurs in deep sand beds,
very anerobic regions sulfur springs things like that,
so there are,
there have been studies published that highlight what types
of bacteria are present in those natural environments
and we found that our bacteria in our anerobic zone here
at the aquarium are those same species.
That actually is very comforting because,
I think one of the most important aspects
of what we are doing here is we are trying
to mimic natural environments.
- [Narrator] That diversity,
gives thee over all colony of anerobic bacteria
resilience against failures by any one member
of the bacterial colony.
that also made Georgia aquarium life support experts
feel good about their nitrate cleaning system.
- I was glad to see that there was diversity honestly
'cause if you desire relying on one thing,
something could go wrong and maybe it doesn't bounce back
as well as they could.
- [Narrator] So do the life support experts
at the aquarium think the fish notice the cleaner water?
- They don't talk to me,
but I think you know,
there are times that which we come out
and we try to get as much as feedback as we can
from these guys but our feedback mechanisms are,
when see these guys healthy,
thriving.
Displaying all the,
the indicators that they seem to be very comfortable
in their environment,
we feel like we've done a very good job.
- They're definitely happy with us,
with the reduction of the nitrates levels have that occurred
over the past couple of years.
- [Narrator] Zoe Pratte,
also keeps an eye on Georgia Aquarium's water
by taking regular samples and there are more studies
to come to help the aquarium keep their habitats optimal
for aquarium residence.
- We still have our longer term sampling going on.
So every other week I go and collect water
form ocean voyager to monitor their microbial populations
within the water colum.
And any time any of the denitrification towers are worked
over then I come and I collect samples form them
opportunistically some state will be at the time.
Its really good partnership,
because we get some pretty good signs out of it
and they also get more information on their system.
(music)