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Appl Environ Microbiol. 1983 May; 45(5): 1519-1525
Copyright © 1983, American Society for Microbiology. All Rights Reserved.

Hydrogen Metabolism by Decomposing Cyanobacterial Aggregates in Big Soda Lake, Nevada

U.S. Geological Survey, Menlo Park, California 94025

ABSTRACT

Hydrogen production by incubated cyanobacterial epiphytes occurred only in the dark, was stimulated by C₂H₂, and was inhibited by O₂. Addition of NO₃^– inhibited dark, anaerobic H₂ production, whereas the addition of NH₄⁺ inhibited N₂ fixation (C₂H₂ reduction) but not dark H₂ production. Aerobically incubated cyanobacterial aggregates consumed H₂, but light-incubated rates (3.6 µmol of H₂ g^–1 h^–1) were statistically equivalent to dark uptake rates (4.8 µmol of H₂ g^–1 h^–1), which were statistically equivalent to dark, anaerobic production rates (2.5 to 10 µmol of H₂ g^–1 h^–1). Production rates of H₂ were fourfold higher for aggregates in a more advanced stage of decomposition. Enrichment cultures of H₂-producing fermentative bacteria were recovered from freshly harvested, H₂-producing cyanobacterial aggregates. Hydrogen production in these cyanobacterial communities appears to be caused by the resident bacterial flora and not by the cyanobacteria. In situ areal estimates of dark H₂ production by submerged epiphytes (6.8 µmol of H₂ m^–2 h^–1) were much lower than rates of light-driven N₂ fixation by the epiphytic cyanobacteria (310 µmol of C₂H₄ m^–2 h^–1).

This article has been cited by other articles:

• Oremland, R. S., Cloern, J. E., Smith, R. L., Culbertson, C. W., Zehr, J., Miller, L., Cole, B., Harvey, R., Sofer, Z., Iversen, N., Klug, M., Des Marais, D. J., Rau, G. (1988). Microbial and biogeochemical processes in Big Soda Lake, Nevada. Geological Society, London, Special Publications 40: 59-75 [Abstract]