Abstract
The changes in the microflora and temperature at the early stage of the high-temperature composting process were studied by using denaturing gradient gel electrophoresis (DGGE) and clone library analysis of PCR-amplified 16S ribosormal DNA with universal bacterial primer sets. The microflora (DGGE analysis) underwent considerable changes in the deep layers from Oh (44℃) to 4h (52℃) and from 6h (72℃) to 20h (80℃) after the start of composting. There were significant changes in the dominant microorganisms (clone library analysis) during the 6h (72℃) and 20h (80℃). The dominant microorganisms were Bacillus species at 6h (72℃) and Geobacillus sp. at 20h (80℃) after the start of composting. On the third day of composting, clone libraries of the surface and deep layers were dominated by Geobacillus sp., while the middle layer by Thermus sp..
