Abstract
Seventeen strains of phototrophic bacteria (4 strains of Chromatium spp., 2 strains of Thiocapsa sp., 4 strains of Ectothiorhodospira spp., 2 strains of Rhodopseudomonas sp., and 5 strains of Chlorobium spp.) have been grown in sulfide-limited continuous cultures to assess the affinity for sulfide. It was found that the affinity (calculated as the initial slope of the specific growth rate versus the concentration of sulfide) is higher in those phototrophic bacteria that deposit elemental sulfur outside the cells, than in those bacteria that store the sulfur inside the cells. A hypothesis is presented to explain this correlation.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Andrews JF (1968) A mathematical model for the continuous culture of microorganisms utilizing inhibitory substrates. Biotechnol Bioengin 10:707–723
Badziong W, Thauer RK (1978) Growth yields and growth rates of Desulfovibrio vulgaris (Marburg) growing on hydrogen plus sulfide and hydrogen plus thiosulfide as the sole energy sources. Arch Microbiol 117:209–214
Beeftink HH, Van Gemerden H (1979) Actual and potential rates of substrate oxidation and product formation in continuous cultures of Chromatium vinosum. Arch Microbiol 121:161–167
Berner RA (1963) Electrode studies of hydrogen sulfide in marine sediments. Geochim Cosmochim Acta 27:563–575
Beudeker RF, Gottschal JC, Kuenen JG (1982) Reactivity versus flexibility in thiobacilli. Antonie van Leeuwenhoek 48:39–51
Cohen Y, Jørgensen BB, Padan E, Shilo M (1975) Sulfide dependent anoxygenic photosynthesis in the cyanobacterium Oscillatoria limnetica. Nature (Lond) 257:489–492
Cohen Y, Padan E, Shilo M (1975) Facultative anoxygenic photosynthesis in the cyanobacterium Oscillatoria limnetica. J Bacteriol 123:855–861
Eisenthal R, Cornish-Bowden A (1974) The direct linear plot. A new graphical procedure for estimating enzyme kinetic parameters. Biochem J 139:715–720
Fukumori Y, Yamanaka T (1979) Flavocytochrome c of Chromatium vinosum. Some enzymatic properties and subunit structure. J Biochem 85:1405–1414
Garlick S, Oren A, Padan E (1977) Occurrence of facultative anoxygenic photosynthesis among filamentous and unicellular cyanobacteria. J Bacteriol 129:623–629
Gray GO, Knaff DB (1982) The role of a cytochrome c-552-cytochrome c complex in the oxidation of sulfide in Chromatium vinosum. Biochim Biophys Acta 680:290–296
Hansen TA (1983) Electron donor metabolism in phototrophic bacteria. In: Ormerod JG (ed) Phototrophic bacteria: anaerobic life in the light. Studies in microbiology, vol 4. Blackwell Sci Publ, Oxford, pp 76–99
Hansen TA, Van Gemerden H (1972) Sulfide utilization by purple non-sulfur bacteria. Arch Mikrobiol 86:49–56
Healey FP (1980) Slope of the Monod equation as an indicator of advantage in nutrient competition. Microbial Ecol 5:281–286
Imhoff JF, Tindall BJ, Grant WD, Trüper HG (1981) Ectothiorhodospira vacuolata sp. nov., a new phototrophic bacterium from soda lakes. Arch Microbiol 130:238–242
Kristjansson JK, Schönheit P, Thauer RK (1982) Different K s values for hydrogen of methanogenic bacteria and sulfate reducing bacteria; an explanation for the apparent inhibition of methanogenesis by sulfate Arch Microbiol 131:278–282
Madigan MT, Brock TB (1975) Photosynthetic sulfide oxidation by Chloroflexus aurantiacus, a filamentous, photosynthetic, gliding bacterium. J Bacteriol 122:782–784
Orion Research Inc (1979) Instruction manual. Sulfide ion electrode, silver ionelectrode model 94-16. Cambridge, MA, USA
Pachmayr F (1960) Vorkommen und Bestimmung von Schwefelverbindungen in Mineralwasser. PhD Thesis University Munich
Schlegel HG (1963) Die Schwefelpurpurbakterien. Umschau 18:573–577
Then J, Trüper HG (1983) Sulfide oxidation in Ectothiorhodospira abdelmalekii. Evidence for the catalytic role of cytochrome c-551. Arch Microbiol 135:254–258
Trüper HG, Fischer U (1982) Anaerobic oxidation of sulphur compounds as electron donors for bacterial photosynthesis. Phil Trans R Soc Lond B 298:529–542
Trüper HG, Schlegel HG (1964) Sulfur metabolism in Thiorhodaceae. I. Quantitative measurements on growing cells of Chromatium okenii. Antonie van Leeuwenhoek J Microbiol Serol 30:225–238
Van Gemerden H (1974) Coexistence of organisms competing for the same substrates: an example among the purple sulfur bacteria. Microbial Ecol 1:104–119
Van Gemerden H, Beeftink HH (1978) Specific rates of substrate oxidation and product formation in autotrophically growing Chromatium vinosum cultures. Arch Microbiol 119:135–143
Van Gemerden H, Beeftink HH (1981) Coexistence of Chlorobium and Chromatium in a sulfide-limited continuous culture Arch Microbiol 129:32–34
Van Gemerden H, Jannasch HW (1971) Continuous culture of Thiorhodaceae. Sulfide and sulfur limited growth of Chromatium vinosum. Arch Microbiol 79:345–353
Wijbenga DJ, van Germerden H (1981) The influence of acetate on the oxidation of sulfide by Rhodopseudomonas capsulata. Arch Microbiol 129:115–119
Zehnder ABJ, Wuhrmann K (1977) Physiology of a Methanobacterium strain AZ. Arch Microbiol 111:199–205
Zevenboom W (1980) Growth and nutrient uptake kinetics of Oscillatoria agardhii. Ph.D. Thesis, Amsterdam
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Additional information
Dedicated to Prof. Dr. Hans G. Schlegel on the occasion of his 60th birthday
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Van Gemerden, H. The sulfide affinity of phototrophic bacteria in relation to the location of elemental sulfur. Arch. Microbiol. 139, 289–294 (1984). https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00408368
Received:
Accepted:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/BF00408368