Open AccessEffect of oxygen tension, salinity, temperature and organic matter concentration on the growth and nitrifying activity of an estuarine strain of Nitrosomonas
Author(s) -
Macfarlane G.T.,
Herbert R.A.
Publication year - 1984
Publication title -
fems microbiology letters
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.899
H-Index - 151
eISSN - 1574-6968
pISSN - 0378-1097
DOI - 10.1111/j.1574-6968.1984.tb01044.x
Subject(s) - salinity , nitrosomonas , estuary , strain (injury) , nitrosomonas europaea , environmental chemistry , oxygen tension , organic matter , oxygen , nitrification , chemistry , biology , ecology , nitrogen , organic chemistry , anatomy
The effects of O 2 tension, temperature, salt concentration and organic matter concentration on the growth and nitrifying activity of Nitrosomonas N 3 isolated from Tay Estuary sediments have been investigated. Chemostat‐grown cultures were able to grow and nitrify at dissolved O 2 concentrations as low as 0.1 mg O 2 · 1 −1 (cell population densities were 15% of those obtained in fully aerated cultures). This bacterium was sensitive to reduced temperatures as chemostat‐grown cultures washed out at growth temperatures below 15°C, at dilution rates > 0.025 · h −1 . Batch‐grown cultures of Nitrosomonas N 3 were used to study the effects of NaCl and complex organic matter concentration on nitrifying activity. Maximum rates of NH + 4 oxidation were recorded at NaCl concentrations of 1% w/v, whilst tryptone soya broth (TSB), nutrient broth (NB), yeast extract broth (YEB) and peptone were inhibitory at concentrations > 10 mg · 1 −1 .