Skip to main content
NCBI home page
Applied and Environmental Microbiology logoLink to Applied and Environmental Microbiology
. 1979 Feb;37(2):237–243. doi: 10.1128/aem.37.2.237-243.1979

Determination of the Carbon-Bound Electron Composition of Microbial Cells and Metabolites by Dichromate Oxidation

Robin F Harris 1, Susan S Adams 1
PMCID: PMC243194  PMID: 16345343

Abstract

The applicability of the silver sulfate-acid dichromate oxidation (chemical oxygen demand) method for determining the carbon-bound electron compositions of microbial cells, substrates, and metabolic by-products was evaluated. An approach for approximating the carbon-bound electron composition of microbial cells from CHN data is also presented. Ten aliphatic and aromatic carboxylic acids, 17 amino acids, and 8 sugars generally gave 96 to 101% (mainly ≥98%) recovery with 0.0625 N dichromate (digestion mixture of 10 ml of sample-10 ml of 0.25 N dichromate-20 ml of Ag2SO4-amended concentrated H2SO4). Recoveries of nicotinic acid (5%) and methionine (65%) were incomplete; arginine (125%) and two purine and three pyrimidine bases (105 to 120%) were overestimated. The validity of 0.0625 N dichromate for determining the carbon-bound electron composition of bacterial cells was supported by theoretical analysis of the carbon-bound electron composition of hypothetical bacterial cell material (defined monomer composition) and by the compatibility of elemental and dichromate oxidation-derived carbon-bound electron compositions of typical bacterial cells.

Full text

PDF
237

Selected References

These references are in PubMed. This may not be the complete list of references from this article.

  1. Hill S. The apparent ATP requirement for nitrogen fixation in growing Klebsiella pneumoniae. J Gen Microbiol. 1976 Aug;96(2):297–312. doi: 10.1099/00221287-95-2-297. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  2. Mayberry W. R., Prochazka G. J., Payne W. J. Factors derived from studies of aerobic growth in minimal media. J Bacteriol. 1968 Oct;96(4):1424–1426. doi: 10.1128/jb.96.4.1424-1426.1968. [DOI] [PMC free article] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  3. Nagai S., Aiba S. Reassessment of maintenance and energy uncoupling in the growth of Azotobacter vinelandii. J Gen Microbiol. 1972 Dec;73(3):531–538. doi: 10.1099/00221287-73-3-531. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  4. Neijssel O. M., Tempest D. W. The role of energy-spilling reactions in the growth of Klebsiella aerogenes NCTC 418 in aerobic chemostat culture. Arch Microbiol. 1976 Nov 2;110(23):305–311. doi: 10.1007/BF00690243. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  5. Owens J. D., Keddie R. M. The nitrogen nutrition of soil and herbage coryneform bacteria. J Appl Bacteriol. 1969 Sep;32(3):338–347. doi: 10.1111/j.1365-2672.1969.tb00981.x. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  6. Payne W. J. Energy yields and growth of heterotrophs. Annu Rev Microbiol. 1970;24:17–52. doi: 10.1146/annurev.mi.24.100170.000313. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  7. Stouthamer A. H. A theoretical study on the amount of ATP required for synthesis of microbial cell material. Antonie Van Leeuwenhoek. 1973;39(3):545–565. doi: 10.1007/BF02578899. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  8. Stouthamer A. H. Theoretical calculations on the influence of the inorganic nitrogen source on parameters for aerobic growth of microorganisms. Antonie Van Leeuwenhoek. 1977;43(3-4):351–367. doi: 10.1007/BF02313762. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]
  9. de Kwaadsteniet J. W., Jager J. C., Stouthamer A. H. A quantitative description of heterotrophic growth in micro-organisms. J Theor Biol. 1976 Mar;57(1):103–120. doi: 10.1016/s0022-5193(76)80007-0. [DOI] [PubMed] [Google Scholar]

Articles from Applied and Environmental Microbiology are provided here courtesy of American Society for Microbiology (ASM)

RESOURCES