DOI: 10.5061/dryad.0vt4b8h6z
title: Carcass decay inhibits denitrification indirectly by regulating the microbiota and physicochemical properties in a model water system

description: Animal carcass decomposition is involved in nitrogen (N) cycle in the
 aquatic ecosystems, e.g., denitrification, volatilization, and leaching.
 The denitrification process is a crucial part of the nitrogen cycle,
 helping to alleviate biological toxicity resulting from nitrate
 accumulation. However, it is still unknown whether and how cadaver decay
 affects the denitrifiers and their activity in river water. In this study,
 six denitrifiers (encoding napA, narG, nirK, nirS, norB, and
 nosZ, respectively) and denitrifying activity were investigated in a model
 water system with nitrogen pollution from corpse decomposition using
 high-throughput sequencing, real-time quantitative PCR, and denitrifying
 enzyme activity (DEA) assay. Cadaver decay increased the quantity and
 altered the composition of denitrifying microbiota. Multiple regression on
 distance matrices revealed that corpse decay had a significantly greater
 impact on the denitrification communities compared to temperature. To our
 surprise, the DEA decreased in the contaminated water by cadavers. The
 multiple regression models revealed that the abundance of denitrifying
 taxa and the gene copies may jointly predict changes in DEA, with the
 highest contribution coming from the norB-type Hydrogenophaga. Further,
 the partial least squares path model (PLS-PM) showed that corpse decay
 indirectly inhibited DEA via the denitrification community and water
 physicochemical properties. Synthesis and applications. This study
 provides important insights into how cadaver decomposition can reduce
 denitrification activity in water systems. These findings can assist us in
 scientifically managing and remediating polluted water bodies.
description: # Carcass decay inhibits denitrification indirectly by regulating the
 microbiota and physicochemical properties in a model water system
 [https://doi.org/10.5061/dryad.0vt4b8h6z](https://doi.org/10.5061/dryad.0vt4b8h6z) Paper: Carcass decay inhibits denitrification indirectly by regulating the microbiota and physicochemical properties in a model water system Authors: Jiawei Yang, Qiaoling Yu, Wanghong Su, Sijie Wang, Xiaochen Wang, Qian Han, Huan Li Description: This README file describes the data package accompanying the above publication. ## Files: 1. AIC.xlsx: Includes a y variable and the best 7 x variables filtered based on  Akaike’s information criterion (AIC). 2. ALPHA.xlsx: Includes the alpha diversity (Observed OTUs, Chao1, ACE, Shannon, Simpson, Coverage) of six microbial communities (i.e., napA, narG, nirK, nirS, norB, and nosZ). C, control groups; E, experimental groups; 1-4, 23℃; 5-8, 26℃; 9-12, 29℃; 13-16, 32℃; 17-20, 35℃. 3. DEA.xlsx: Includes the denitrification enzyme activity (DEA). C, control groups; E, experimental groups; 1-4, 23℃; 5-8, 26℃; 9-12, 29℃; 13-16, 32℃; 17-20, 35℃. 4. DCG.xlsx: Includes the absolute copy numbers (copies/L) of 16S rRNA, napA, narG, nirK, nirS, norB, and nosZ. C, control groups; E, experimental groups; T, temperature. 5. dissimilarity.xlsx: Includes inter group dissimilarity (e.g., F1 vs. H1) and intra group dissimilarity (e.g., F1 vs. F2) in six microbial communities based on the Bray-Curtis distance matrix. H (C), control groups; F (E), experimental groups; 1-4, 23℃; 5-8, 26℃; 9-12, 29℃; 13-16, 32℃; 17-20, 35℃. 6. genera.xlsx: Includes the genera abundance od six microbial communities. H (C), control groups; F (E), experimental groups; 1-4, 23℃; 5-8, 26℃; 9-12, 29℃; 13-16, 32℃; 17-20, 35℃. 7. matirx.xlsx:  Includes six microbial communities of Bray-Curtis distance matrix. H (C), control groups; F (E), experimental groups; 1-4, 23℃; 5-8, 26℃; 9-12, 29℃; 13-16, 32℃; 17-20, 35℃. 8. PHYS.xlsx:  Includes the physicochemical properties of the water. C, control groups; E, experimental groups; 1-4, 23℃; 5-8, 26℃; 9-12, 29℃; 13-16, 32℃; 17-20, 35℃; SALT, salinity; DO, dissolved oxygen; NH4-N, ammonium nitrogen; ORP, oxidation-reduction potential; CON, conductivity; TDS, total dissolved solids; TC, total carbon; TN, total nitrogen; NO3-N, nitrate-nitrogen. 9. R_model.txt:  The code for the R model, including AIC,  MRM, PERMANOVA, PHEATMAP, and PLS-PM used in the article.