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Appl Environ Microbiol. 1965 November; 13(6): 886-894
Copyright © 1965 American Society for Microbiology. All Rights Reserved.

Microbiological Assay for Organic Compounds in Seawater

Department of Oceanography and Meteorology, Texas A & M University, College Station, Texas

ABSTRACT

A method for the quantitative identification of organic compounds in seawater has been developed. When auxotrophic mutants of Serratia marinorubra were incubated at 21 to 24 C for 72 hr with constant agitation, standard bioassay reference curves were obtained. Sodium glycerophosphate (400 mg per liter), ammonium dibasic citrate (5 g per liter), and glycerol (25 ml per liter) supplied the needed nutrients for maximal growth with a limited concentration of the required metabolite. Data are presented for the microbiological assay for biotin in waters of the Gulf of Mexico and adjacent bays. The range of sensitivity for the biotin mutant A101V is 5 to 12 mµg per liter in seawater, with a growth response from 2 to 16 mµg per liter of seawater. The possible ecological and chemical significance of biotin occurrence in spring-summer off-shore water is discussed.

¹ Present address: Department of Biochemistry and Nutrition, Texas A & M University, College Station.

² Present address: Institute of Marine Science, University of Alaska, College.