Abstract
NITRIFICATION of ammonium ions to nitrite and thence to nitrate is commonly a rapid process in soil; yet the isolation of the organisms responsible has always proved to be a difficult and tedious procedure. The reason for this is not difficult to find. The work of Winogradsky and of Meyerhof, which has been summarized in her book by the late Dr. Stephenson1, has shown that the nitrifying organisms (Nitrosomonas and Nitrobacter) consume rather more than a hundred atoms of oxygen for every atom of carbon assimilated. On the other hand, the generality of (heterotrophic) soil organisms consumes only about five atoms of oxygen for every atom of carbon assimilated, according to the results of experiments on the carbon dioxide outputs of soils2; this latter result of Porteous and Lees has been confirmed by as yet unpublished measurements of the oxygen uptakes of soils in the percolating respirometer3.
This is a preview of subscription content, access via your institution
Access options
Subscribe to this journal
Receive 51 print issues and online access
$199.00 per year
only $3.90 per issue
Buy this article
- Purchase on Springer Link
- Instant access to full article PDF
Prices may be subject to local taxes which are calculated during checkout
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Stephenson, M., “Bacterial Metabolism” (Longmans, Green and Co., London, 1949).
Lees, H., and Porteous, J. W., Plant and Soil, 2, 231 (1950).
Lees, H., Nature, 166, 118 (1950).
Höber, R. (edit.), “The Physical Chemistry of Cells and Tissues” (Churchill, London, 1945).
Lees, H., Plant and Soil, 1, 221 (1949).
Meiklejohn, J., J. Gen. Microbiol., 4, 185 (1950).
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
LEES, H. Isolation of the Nitrifying Organisms from Soil. Nature 167, 355–356 (1951). https://doi.org/10.1038/167355b0
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/167355b0
This article is cited by
-
Phosphate requirements of the nitrifying bacteria
Antonie van Leeuwenhoek (1967)
-
Hydroxylamine as an Intermediate in Nitrification
Nature (1952)
-
Isolation of Nitrifying Organisms and Oxygen Supply
Nature (1952)
Comments
By submitting a comment you agree to abide by our Terms and Community Guidelines. If you find something abusive or that does not comply with our terms or guidelines please flag it as inappropriate.
