A novel aerobic denitrifier strain HNR, isolated from activated sludge, was identified as Enterobacter cloacae by16S rRNA sequencing analysis. Glucose was considered as the most favorable C-source for strain HNR. The logistic equation well described the bacterial growth, yielding a maximum growth rate (mu(max)) of 0.283 h(-1) with an initial NO3 (-)-N concentration of 110 mg/L. Almost all NO3 (-)-N was removed aerobically within 30 h with an average removal rate of 4.58 mg N L-1 h(-1). Nitrogen balance analysis revealed that proximately 70.8 % of NO3 (-)-N was removed as gas products and only 20.7 % was transformed into biomass. GC-MS result indicates that N-2 was the end product of aerobic denitrification. The enzyme activities of nitrate reductase and nitrite reductase, which are related to the process of aerobic denitrification, were 0.0688 and 0.0054 U/mg protein, respectively. Thus, the aerobic denitrification of reducing NO3 (-) to N-2 by strain HNR was demonstrated. The optimal conditions for nitrate removal were C/N ratio 13, pH value 8, shaking speed 127 rpm and temperature 30 A degrees C. These findings show that E. cloacae strain HNR has a potential application on wastewater treatment to achieve nitrate removal under aerobic conditions.