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Utilization of nitrate byBeggiatoa alba

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Abstract

Beggiatoa alba B18LD utilizes both nitrate and nitrite as sole nitrogen sources, although nitrite was toxic above 1 mM.B. alba coupledin vivo acetate oxidation, but not sulfide oxidation, with nitrate and nitrite reduction.B. alba could not, however, grow anaerobically with nitrate as the sole electron acceptor. Furthermore, the incorporation of acetate into macromolecules under anaerobic conditions with nitrate as the sole electron acceptor was less 10% of the incorporation with oxygen as the electron acceptor. The product of nitrate reduction byB. alba was ammonia; N2 or N2O were not produced. The nitrate reductase activity inB. alba was soluble and it utilized reduced flavins or methyl viologen and dithionite as electron donors. Pyrimidine nucleotides were not used as in vitro electron donors, either alone or with flavins in coupled assays. TheB. alba nitrate reductase activity was competitively inhibited with chlorate and was only mildly inhibited by azide and cyanide. Nitrate was not required for induction of theB. alba nitrate reductase, and neither oxygen nor ammonia repressed its activity. Thus,B. alba nitrate reductase appears to be an assimilatory nitrate reductase with unusual regulatory properties.

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Abbreviations

MV:

Methyl viologen

DT:

dithionite

GS:

glutamine synthetase

GOGAT:

glutamine 2-oxoglutarate aminotransferase

PPO:

2-diphenyloxazole

POPOP:

1,4-(bis)-[2-(5-phenyloxazolyl)] benzene

TCA:

trichloroacetic acid

CCCP:

carbonylcyanidem-chlorophenylhydrazone

FCCP:

carbonylcyanidep-trifluoromethoxyphenylhydrazone

TTFA:

thenoyltrifluoroacetone

PHEN:

1,10-phenanthroline

HOQNO:

2-heptyl 4-hydroxyquinoline-n-oxide

8HQ:

8-hydroxyquinoline

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Vargas, A., Strohl, W.R. Utilization of nitrate byBeggiatoa alba . Arch. Microbiol. 142, 279–284 (1985). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00693404

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