Whole cell respiration and nitrogenase activities in Azotobacter vinelandii growing in oxygen controlled continuous culture

Abstract

Azotobacter vinelandii strain OP was grown in continuous culture at various dissolved oxygen concentrations of air (100% air saturation of the medium=225 ±14 μM O₂). Sucrose was added as carbon source and either dinitrogen or ammonia as nitrogen sources. Irrespective of the nitrogen source steady state cultures showed the following general responses with dissolved oxygen concentrations increasing from about 1% to 30% air saturation: (i) cell protein levels, (ii) the amount of cell protein formed per sucrose consumed as well as (iii) nitrogenase activity decreased by at least a factor of two while (iv) cellular respiration increased. At higher oxygen concentrations the parameters changed only slightly, if at all. Increasing the sucrose concentration in the inflowing medium (s _R) from 3 g/l to 15 g/l increased the total level of cellular respiration with nitrogen-fixing cultures but was more pronounced with ammonium-assimilating cultures. With nitrogen-fixing cultures cell protein levels increased five-fold while the ratio of protein formed per sucrose consumed as well as cellular nitrogenase activity remained unaffected. With ammonium-assimilating cultures the cell protein level was only doubled and the level of cell protein formed per sucrose consumed was decreased at the higher s _R.

Increasing the dilution rate at a constant oxygen concentration of 45% air saturation resulted in an almost parallel increase of both cellular respiratory and nitrogenase activity at low and moderate dilution rates. At high dilution rates nitrogenase activity increased steeply over the respiratory activity. Nitrogen-fixing cultures adapted to various oxygen concentrations were subjected to oxygen stress by increasing the oxygen concentration for 7 min. In all cases, this resulted in a complete inhibition (‘switch-off’) of nitrogenase activity. Upon restoration of the original oxygen concentration nitrogenase activity returned to a decreased level. The discussion arrives at the conclusion that some of the results are incompatible with the concept of respiratory protection of nitrogenase.