248 Chapter 8 granulation has been shown to function in biological wastewater reactors (Gagliano et al., 2020; Sudmalis et al., 2018a). In this regard, the importance of osmolytes in alleviating stress in anaerobic granular sludge has been highlighted, emphasizing the potential of N-acetyl-beta-L-lysine in “Ca. Methanoperedens”, as described in Chapter 1, for treating saline wastewater in WWTPs (Sudmalis et al., 2018b). Furthermore, controlling for nitrate excess and limitation would also be important to account for DNRA via “Ca. Methanoperedens” as shown in Chapters 3 and 4 or, the production of extra nitrate via the anammox process (Strous et al., 1999). Beyond WWTP applications, N-DAMO has broader uses in reducing greenhouse gas emissions from source to sink by leveraging the metabolic flexibility of “Ca. Methanoperedens”. For example, (bio)electricity generation is posed as a novel strategy tested in proof-of-concept bioelectrochemical systems (BES), where “Ca. Methanoperedens” ability to oxidize methane is coupled with electron transfer to electrodes (Ouboter et al., 2024). Additionally, N-DAMO systems have been described in heavy metal-rich rivers, as well as proposed for heavy metal removal from industrial methane sources. In fact, “Ca. Methanoperedens” can reduce metals such Br, Se, Cr, V, and Sb and precipitate them, rendering them non-toxic (Glodowska et al., 2023; Glodowska et al., 2022). In conclusion, N-DAMO represents a promising biotechnology not only for WWTP currently (anaerobic sludge systems) but also the WWTP-of-the-future (anaerobic mainstream systems) through simultaneous methane and nitrogen removal but also for applications in biofuel generation and heavy metal detoxification. The metabolic flexibility of these organisms opens exciting new avenues for reducing greenhouse gas emissions and creating value-added products.
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