Enterobacter sp. strain R4-368 is one of the few characterized Jatropha endophytic diazotrophic bacteria and was isolated from surface-sterilized roots. This bacterium shows strong growth-promoting effects, being able to increase plant biomass and seed yields. Enterobacter sp. R4-368 is the second fully sequenced diazotrophic Enterobacter species. The sequence information shall facilitate the e...

BACKGROUND AND AIMS In a leaf canopy, there is a turnover of leaves; i.e. they are produced, senesce and fall. These processes determine the amount of leaf area in the canopy, which in turn determines canopy photosynthesis. The turnover rate of leaves is affected by environmental factors and is different among species. This mini-review discusses factors responsible for leaf dynamics in plant ca...

Nitrate pollutants increase the growth of algal bloom, resulting in fresh water eutrophication. The high nitrogen level in wastewater has become a growing concern, which has risen the necessity to develop efficient nitrogen removal techniques. Biological denitrification, which is the reduction of oxidized nitrogen compounds like nitrate or nitrite to gaseous nitrogen compounds, is the most impo...

Nitrate pollutants increase the growth of algal bloom, resulting in fresh water eutrophication. The high nitrogen level in wastewater has become a growing concern, which has risen the necessity to develop efficient nitrogen removal techniques. Biological denitrification, which is the reduction of oxidized nitrogen compounds like nitrate or nitrite to gaseous nitrogen compounds, is the most impo...

We studied the microbial flora in decomposing mangrove leaves in relation to changes in nitrogen and tannin levels, and in penaeid prawn assemblages. Senescent leaves of two mangrove species (Rhizophora apiculata and Avicennia marina) kept in nylon bags, were separately immersed for 80 days in five tanks full of mangrove water. A known amount of decomposing leaves was collected every ten days f...

Geobacter species often play an important role in bioremediation of environments contaminated with metals or organics and show promise for harvesting electricity from waste organic matter in microbial fuel cells. The ability of Geobacter species to fix atmospheric nitrogen is an important metabolic feature for these applications. We identified novel regulatory cascades controlling nitrogen-fixa...

The site of protonation in a molecule can greatly affect the fragments observed in product ion MS/MS spectra. In electrospray positive ionization mass spectra, protonation usually occurs predominantly on the most basic site on the molecule to produce the thermodynamically favored protonated species. However, the literature is unclear whether liquid phase or gas phase thermodynamics has the grea...

Nutrient richness of wood mould in tree hollows with the Scarabaeid beetle Osmoderma eremita.— Trunk hollows with wood mould harbour a rich invertebrate fauna with many threatened species, and it has been suggested that the beetle Osmoderma eremita (Coleoptera, Scarabaeidae) is a keystone species in this community. We estimated the amount of nitrogen and phosphorus in wood mould and compared th...

While it is well established that ecosystems display strong responses to elevated nitrogen deposition, the importance of the ratio between the dominant forms of deposited nitrogen (NH(x) and NO(y)) in determining ecosystem response is poorly understood. As large changes in the ratio of oxidised and reduced nitrogen inputs are occurring, this oversight requires attention. One reason for this kno...