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. 1986 Jul;52(1):28–32. doi: 10.1128/aem.52.1.28-32.1986

Carbon and Nitrogen Content of Natural Planktonic Bacteria †

Toshi Nagata 1
PMCID: PMC203387  PMID: 16347114

Abstract

A method of estimating carbon and nitrogen content per unit of natural bacterial cell volume was developed. This method is based on the difference in the retentiveness of bacteria between two kinds of glass fiber filter, GF/C and GF/F (Whatman, Inc., Clifton, N.J.). Biovolume and biomass (carbon and nitrogen content) of bacteria which passed through the GF/C but not the GF/F filter were estimated with an epifluorescence microscopy and a CHN analyzer, respectively. From seasonal determinations of natural planktonic bacteria in epilimnetic waters of a mesotrophic lake, the conversion factors of 106 fg of C/μm3 and 25 fg of N/μm3 were derived as average values. By using these values, the contribution of bacteria to the biomass of lake plankton is discussed.

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Selected References

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