Summary
Anabaena flos-aquae is grown in chemostats under phosphate and urea-limited conditions. Nitrogenase activity in phosphate-limited cells has a maximum activity at a dilution rate of 0.025 h-1 and is repressed 24-fold by 15 mM KNO3. Cultures growing on 1.5 mM nitrate obtain 1/2–2/3 of cell nitrogen from N2. Cells form inducible nitrite assimilating enzymes when grown on nitrate. Algae growing under A or He on limiting urea or phosphate-limited with nitrate have active nitrogenase. The ratio of nitrogenase activity to heterocyst numbers varied 90-fold depending on source of nitrogen, 15 mM KNO3 gave the smallest ratio. The regulatory mechanisms controlling the activity of nitrogenase in blue-green algae is discussed.
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Bone, D.H. Nitrogenase activity and nitrogen assimilation in Anabaena flos-aquae growing in continuous culture. Archiv. Mikrobiol. 80, 234–241 (1971). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00410124
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00410124