Open AccessThe occurrence of denitrifying colourless sulphur‐oxidising bacteria in marine waters and sediments as shown by the agar shake technique
Author(s) -
Bharathi P.A.Loka
Publication year - 1989
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.1574-6968.1989.tb03388.x
Subject(s) - denitrifying bacteria , sulfur , bacteria , agar , nitrate , chemistry , environmental chemistry , marine bacteriophage , anaerobic exercise , anaerobic bacteria , microbiology and biotechnology , biology , denitrification , nitrogen , organic chemistry , physiology , genetics
The agar shake technique has been tested for the enumeration and isolation of bacteria involved in the anaerobic oxidation of reduced sulphur compounds. High numbers of colony forming units were observed from regions rich in sulphide, and the numbers of these forms were sometimes significantly correlated with the number of sulphate‐reducing bacteria. The isolates could oxidise not only thiosulphate but also sulphide in liquid medium at the expense of nitrate. Addition of 1 mM glucose to the medium enhanced the rate and amount of thiosulphate oxidised by many of the isolates. Hence the use of the agar shake technique is recommended for the study of these little known facultatively or even obligately chemolithotrophic bacteria involved in the anaerobic oxidation of reduced inorganic sulphur compounds in the marine and estuarine environment.