The Stratiotes aloides L. stand as a habitat in oxbow lake Bużysko

The impact of Stratiotes aloides L. (water soldier) on the accumulation and concentration of nitrogen and phosphorus, seston concentrations and provision a habitat for planktonic crustaceans was studied in a Polish oxbow lake during 2002–2004. The Stratiotes stand and the open water differed in the concentrations of mineral nitrogen and chlorophyll a. Stratiotes accumulated significantly more nitrogen in spring. The lower TN:TP ratio, concentrations of mineral nitrogen and chlorophyll a in stands of the water soldier may suggest nitrogen limitation in the littoral of the oxbow lake. The decrease of phytoplankton biomass in the Stratiotes stands may also result from shading and/or allelopathy. The plants did not reduce seston concentrations in the littoral but did affect the abundance and diversity of planktonic and bentho-planktonic crustaceans and probably provided a daytime refuge for Ceriodaphnia and older stages of Cyclopoida but not for Daphnia.     

NtrC-dependent regulatory network for curdlan biosynthesis in response to nitrogen limitation in Agrobacterium sp. ATCC 31749

The mechanism of nitrogen signal regulating curdlan biosynthesis in Agrobacterium sp. ATCC 31749 was investigated. Under nitrogen limitation, more carbon flux is directed to curdlan synthesis with low specific growth rate. When ntrB and ntrC genes in Agrobacterium sp. were inactivated, NH₄Cl utilization ability was significantly impaired in the ntrB and ntrC mutants and curdlan production was significantly reduced. Through proteomic analysis, nearly 40 proteins did not express in ntrC mutant compared with wild type strain. The levels of 22 proteins were significantly increased and 21 proteins were repressed after nitrogen exhaustion. Phosphoglucomutase activity in Agrobacterium sp. was also decreased. However, phosphoglucomutase activity in the ntrC mutant did not change. On that basis, an NtrC-dependent regulatory network for curdlan biosynthesis in response to nitrogen limitation in Agrobacterium sp. ATCC 31749 is proposed.     

Piglets produced from in vivo blastocysts vitrified using the Cryologic Vitrification Method (solid surface vitrification) and a sealed storage container

The objective was to develop a simple successful porcine cryopreservation protocol that prevented contact between embryos and liquid nitrogen, avoiding potential contamination risks. In vivo-derived blastocysts were collected surgically from donor pigs, and two porcine embryo vitrification protocols (one used centrifugation to polarize intracytoplasmic lipids, whereas the other did not) were compared using the Cryologic Vitrification Method (CVM), which used solid surface vitrification. The CVM allowed embryos to be vitrified, without any contact between embryos and liquid nitrogen. Both protocols resulted in similar in vitro survival rates (90% and 94%) and cell number (89 ± 5 and 99 ± 5) after 48 h in vitro culture of vitrified and warmed blastocysts. The protocol that did not use centrifugation was selected for continued use. To protect vitrified embryos from contact with liquid nitrogen and potential contamination during storage, a sealed outer container was developed. Use of this sealed outer container did not affect in vitro survival of cryopreserved blastocysts. In vivo blastocysts (n = 151) were collected, vitrified, and stored using the selected protocol and sealed container. These embryos were subsequently warmed and transferred to six recipients; five became pregnant and farrowed a total of 26 piglets. This embryo vitrification method allowed porcine embryos to be successfully vitrified and stored without any contact with liquid nitrogen.     

Changes in lipid, protein and pigment concentrations in nitrogen-stressed Chlorella minutissima cultures

Many changes occur in the biochemical composition of microalgae in response to stress conditions. In the present study, two nitrogen-stressed Chlorella minutissima strains (MACC 360 and 452) were placed in media containing a range of nitrogen concentrations (7–700?mg?L^?1 N). Biomass, chlorophyll a and b, carotenoid, protein and lipid concentrations were monitored over 15?days. There was lower biomass accumulation in nitrogen-deficient treatments while lipid yields increased to 40–46% DW in response to nitrogen deficiency. Chlorophyll concentrations initially recovered in response to the nitrogen spike with maximum concentrations recorded on days?6–8 and decreased thereafter as nitrogen became limiting. In comparison, proteins recovered faster with maximum concentrations recorded on day?4. Carotenoid concentrations did not increase in response to the nitrogen spike.     

黄土丘陵区子午岭不同植物群落下土壤氮素及相关酶活性的特征

以黄土丘陵区子午岭林区裸露地为对照,选择撂荒地、白羊草草地、油松、山杨和辽东栎林地五种典型植被群落下0—10cm和10—20 cm土层的土壤为研究对象,对土壤无机氮、有机氮、微生物量氮含量和脲酶、蛋白酶以及硝酸还原酶的活性进行了研究。结果表明,土壤中各种氮素基本表现为乔木林,尤其是辽东栎和油松下含量最高,而有机氮则在白羊草地富集明显。铵态氮为子午岭林区速效氮的主要形式。土壤铵态氮与微生物氮极显著正相关;有机氮和亚硝态氮、矿化氮、微生物氮均显著正相关。脲酶和硝酸还原酶活性在辽东栎群落下最高,蛋白酶在白羊草地下较高,且脲酶活性在土壤上层高于下层,而蛋白酶和硝酸还原酶并没有表现出明显规律。脲酶活性和铵态氮、有机氮含量显著正相关,与微生物量氮极显著正相关;硝酸还原酶活性与铵态氮含量显著正相关;蛋白酶活性和土壤各种氮素含量无相关性。     

Free-Living Rhizobium Strain Able To Grow on N2 as the Sole Nitrogen Source

A Rhizobium strain isolated from stem nodules of the legume Sesbania rostrata was shown to grow on atmospheric nitrogen (N₂) as the sole nitrogen source. Non-N₂-fixing mutants isolated directly on agar plates formed nodules that did not fix N₂ when inoculated into the host plant.     

Nitrogen Mineralization by Acanthamoeba polyphaga in Grazed Pseudomonas paucimobilis Populations

Nitrogen mineralization was studied in a simple grazing system in which the protozoan Acanthamoeba polyphaga was grown with the bacterium Pseudomonas paucimobilis (two soil organisms isolated from the shortgrass prairie in northern Colorado). In different experiments, either carbon or nitrogen was adjusted to be in limiting amounts. When carbon was limiting, grazers were almost entirely responsible for nitrogen mineralization, with bacteria themselves contributing little. When nitrogen was limiting, nitrogen mineralization by grazers permitted continued growth by the grazed bacteria and a greater bacterial biomass production. The increased growth of the grazed bacteria did not result in an increased total amount of carbon used, but the grazed bacteria used carbon more efficiently than the ungrazed bacteria.     

Nitrogen Limitation in Natural Populations of Cyanobacteria (Spirulina and Oscillatoria spp.) and Its Effect on Macromolecular Synthesis

Natural populations of the cyanobacteria Spirulina species and Oscillatoria species obtained from Israeli fishponds were limited in growth by nitrogen availability in summer. Physiological indicators for nitrogen limitation, such as phycocyanin, chlorophyll a, and carbohydrate content, did not show clear evidence for nitrogen limited growth, since these organisms are capable of vertical migration from and to the nitrogen-rich bottom. By means of ¹⁴C labeling of the cells under simulated pond conditions followed by cell fractionation into macromolecular compounds, we found that carbohydrates synthesized at the lighted surface were partially utilized for dark protein synthesis at the bottom of these ponds.     

Glutamine Involvement in Nitrogen Control of Gibberellic Acid Production in Gibberella fujikuroi

When the fungus Gibberella fujikuroi ATCC 12616 was grown in fermentor cultures, both intracellular kaurene biosynthetic activities and extracellular GA₃ accumulation reached high levels when exogenous nitrogen was depleted in the culture. Similar patterns were exhibited by several nonrelated enzymatic activities, such as formamidase and urease, suggesting that all are subject to nitrogen regulation. The behavior of the enzymes involved in nitrogen assimilation (glutamine synthetase, glutamate dehydrogenase, and glutamate synthase) during fungal growth in different nitrogen sources suggests that glutamine is the final product of nitrogen assimilation in G. fujikuroi. When ammonium or glutamine was added to hormone-producing cultures, extracellular GA₃ did not accumulate. However, when the conversion of ammonium into glutamine was inhibited by L-methionine-DL-sulfoximine, only glutamine maintained this effect. These results suggest that glutamine may well be the metabolite effector in nitrogen repression of GA₃ synthesis, as well as in other nonrelated enzymatic activities in G. fujikuroi.     

Utilization of Inorganic Nitrogen Compounds by Sphaerotilus natans Growing in a Continuous-Flow Apparatus

Sphaerotilus natans was grown, attached, in a continuous-flow apparatus with inorganic nitrogen compounds (NH₄Cl, NaNO₂, or NaNO₃) as the only sources of nitrogen. The growth rate with NH₄⁺-containing medium did not differ from that with media containing glutamate or Casitone as the nitrogen source.     

Influence of temperature,rate of feeding and body weight on nitrogen metabolism of bream,Abramis brama L

• 1.1. Measurements of the rate of nitrogen consumption, total nitrogen and ammonia excretion and nitrogen absorption of bream, Abramis brama L. (body weight range 0.4–519 g wet wt) were made at 10, 15 and 20 C.
• 2.2. Fish were fed once daily on live zooplankton collected in Lake Balaton and cultured Tubifex sp. at 5–15% of their body weight.
• 3.3. Fish size and temperature had a combined effect on the rate of total nitrogen excretion. Total nitrogen excretion did not increase proportionally with an increase in consumption.
• 4.4. On average, 52–80% of the nitrogen consumed with food was excreted by bream.
• 5.5. The greatest part of total nitrogen excretion was ammonia and its proportion in the total ranged between 53 and 75%.
• 6.6. Temperature did not have any significant effect on the proportion of excreted ammonia and the rate of excreted total nitrogen was the only factor determining its proportion in the total.
• 7.7. The rate of nitrogen absorption of bream was surprisingly very high.

     

Role of Amino Acids and Vitamins in Nutrition of Mesophilic Methanococcus spp

In this study we found that autotrophic methanococci similar to Methanococcus maripaludis obtained up to 57% of their cellular carbon from exogenous amino acids. About 85% of the incorporation was into protein. Primarily nonpolar and basic amino acids and glycine were incorporated; only small amounts of acidic and some polar amino acids were taken up. An additional 10% of the incorporation was into the nucleic acid fraction. Because little ¹⁴CO₂ was formed from the ¹⁴C-amino acids, little metabolism of the amino acids occurred. Therefore the growth stimulation by amino acids was probably due to the sparing of anabolic energy requirements. Of the amino acids incorporated, only alanine was also a sole nitrogen source for these methanococci. In contrast, Methanococcus vannielii and “Methanococcus aeolicus” are autotrophic methanococci which did not incorporate amino acids and did not utilize alanine as a sole nitrogen source. Although glutamine served as a sole nitrogen source for the autotrophic methanococci and Methanococcus voltae, a heterotrophic methanococcus, growth was due to chemical deamination in the medium. M. voltae requires leucine and isoleucine for growth. However, these amino acids were not significant nitrogen sources, and alanine was not a sole nitrogen source for the growth of M. voltae. The branched-chain amino acids were not extensively metabolized by M. voltae. Pantoyl lactone and pantoic acid were readily incorporated by M. voltae. The intact vitamin pantothenate was neither stimulatory to growth nor incorporated. In conclusion, although amino acids and vitamins are nutritionally important to both autotrophic and heterotrophic methanococci, generally they are not subject to extensive catabolism.     

Nitrogen Control of Atrazine Utilization in Pseudomonas sp. Strain ADP

Pseudomonas sp. strain ADP uses the herbicide atrazine as the sole nitrogen source. We have devised a simple atrazine degradation assay to determine the effect of other nitrogen sources on the atrazine degradation pathway. The atrazine degradation rate was greatly decreased in cells grown on nitrogen sources that support rapid growth of Pseudomonas sp. strain ADP compared to cells cultivated on growth-limiting nitrogen sources. The presence of atrazine in addition to the nitrogen sources did not stimulate degradation. High degradation rates obtained in the presence of ammonium plus the glutamine synthetase inhibitor MSX and also with an Nas⁻ mutant derivative grown on nitrate suggest that nitrogen regulation operates by sensing intracellular levels of some key nitrogen-containing metabolite. Nitrate amendment in soil microcosms resulted in decreased atrazine mineralization by the wild-type strain but not by the Nas⁻ mutant. This suggests that, although nitrogen repression of the atrazine catabolic pathway may have a strong impact on atrazine biodegradation in nitrogen-fertilized soils, the use of selected mutant variants may contribute to overcoming this limitation.     

Effect of laboratory containment on the nitrogen metabolism of termites

When Nasutitermes exitiosus, Nasutitermes walkeri and Coptotermes lacteus were brought into the laboratory they rapidly lost, within 24–48 hr, their ability to fix dinitrogen. With N. exitiosus and N. walkeri the loss was linear over the first 26–32 hr at a rate of about 3–4% per hour. N. walkeri completely lost its ability to fix dinitrogen and did not recover it during a further 11 days in the laboratory, whereas N. exitiosus and C. lacteus partially recovered their dinitrogen fixing ability to about 25–50% of the original rate. During laboratory storage of up to 60 days both C. lacteus and N. exitiosus gradually lost total nitrogen, while at the same time their uric acid content increased. The uric acid content of N. walkeri increased during 17 days in the laboratory while total nitrogen remained essentially constant. Xanthine dehydrogenase was not detected in freshly-collected N. walkeri but was detectable after two days of laboratory storage and reached a maximum activity in 8–10 days. The rate of dinitrogen fixation, total nitrogen and uric acid of field populations of N. exitiosus and N. walkeri (tested within 2 hr of collection) remained within close limits over a 6–8 week period, indicating that the changes in these parameters observed in populations kept in the laboratory did not occur in field populations. In field populations of N. walkeri the total nitrogen was about 1.4% of the fresh weight (6.7% of the dry weight) and the uric acid content was about 1.3% of the fresh weight (6.6% of the dry weight), with the amount of total nitrogen present as uric acid being about 31%. In N. exitiosus these values were: total nitrogen about 1.6% of the fresh weight (7.4% of the dry weight), uric acid about 0.6% of the fresh weight (2.9% of the dry weight), with uric acid accounting for about 13% of total nitrogen. When workers of N. walkeri were stored in a container near their nest they lost dinitrogen fixing ability to the same extent as workers brought into the laboratory, indicating that disruption of the nest was sufficient to affect dinitrogen fixation.     

Growth of Octopine-Catabolizing Pseudomonas spp. under Octopine Limitation in Chemostats and Their Potential To Compete with Agrobacterium tumefaciens

The growth characteristics of five octopine-catabolizing pseudomonads have been determined in batch and continuous cultures. All five strains belonged to rRNA homology group I and showed a more psychrotrophic growth pattern than did Agrobacterium tumefaciens B6 and ATCC 15955. In chemostats limited by octopine, either as the source of carbon and nitrogen or the sole source of nitrogen, maximum specific growth rates and substrate affinities were lower than those in chemostats limited by glutamate. These growth dynamics were similar to those observed for Agrobacterium strains B6 and ATCC 15955 even though the catabolic genes and pathways are believed to be different in the two genera. An analysis of the yields in octopine-limited chemostats indicated that the use of octopine as the sole source of carbon and nitrogen was grossly inefficient. Octopine and presumably lysopine and octopinic acid provided a better source of nitrogen than of carbon. One of the Pseudomonas fluorescens strains, E175D, was able to produce its highest yield on octopine as a nitrogen source. Competition models formulated on pure culture parameters indicated that two of the Pseudomonas spp. would dominate A. tumefaciens B6 and ATCC 15955 when in simple competition for octopine as a limiting substrate.     

A Structure-Activity Study with Aryl Acylamidases

We examined the relationship between chemical structure and biodegradability of acylanilide herbicides by using a set of model compounds. Four bacterial isolates (one gram-negative and three gram-positive) that grew on acetanilide were used. These soil isolates cleaved the amide bond of acetanilide via an aryl acylamidase reaction, producing aniline and the organic acid acetate. A series of acetanilide analogs with alkyl substitutions on the nitrogen atom or the aromatic ring were tested for their ability to induce aryl acylamidase activity and act as substrates for the enzyme. The substrate range, in general, was limited to those analogs not disubstituted in the ortho position of the benzene ring or which did not contain an alkyl group on the nitrogen atom. These same N-substituted compounds did not induce enzyme activity either, whereas the ortho-substituted compounds could in some cases.     

Effects of litters with different concentrations of phenolics on the competition between Calluna vulgaris and Deschampsia flexuosa

We hypothesized that the outcome of competition between ericaceous plants and grasses is strongly affected by the concentrations of phenolics in the litter that they produce. To test the effect of phenolic-rich litter on soluble soil nitrogen concentrations, plant nitrogen uptake and inter-specific competition, we conducted a greenhouse experiment with the shrub Calluna vulgaris and the grass Deschampsia flexuosa and their leaf litters. Two litters of C. vulgaris were used, with equal nitrogen concentration but different (high and low) concentrations of total phenolics. The D. flexuosa leaf litter contained lower concentrations of phenolics, but higher concentrations of nitrogen than the C. vulgaris litters. The plants were grown in monocultures and in mixed cultures. Inorganic and dissolved organic nitrogen were measured monthly during the experiment. After four months, we measured above- and belowground biomass and the nutrient concentrations in above- and belowground plant parts. In monocultures, C. vulgaris produced more shoot and root biomass on its own litter than with no litter. Growth of Calluna was reduced on grass litter. D. flexuosa plants produced most biomass on their own litter type, whether in monocultures or in mixed cultures. Addition of Calluna litter stimulated the growth of D. flexuosa both in monoculture and in mixtures. The grass plants outcompeted Calluna both on shrub litter and on grass litter but not when grown without litter. The two C. vulgaris litter types that differed in their concentration of phenolics did not differ in their effects on the competition between the two species or on the production of inorganic and dissolved organic nitrogen. We conclude that the nitrogen content of the litter is more important as a plant feature driving competition between shrubs and grasses than the concentrations of phenolics.