NITRITE OXIDATION BY NITROBACTER 447 4. The relationship between the rate of oxidation and the partial pressure of dissolved oxygen has been studied at several temperatures. 5. A discussion of the effect of temperature on the parameters of the rate equations for the oxidation of nitrite is presented. This work represents part of an investigation supported by the Institut pour l'Encouragement de la Recherche Scientifique dans l'Industrie et I'Agriculture.

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Degradation of indole-3-acetic acid was investigated in etiolated pea shoots; the study was limited to indolic metabolites. The products formed were fractionated by column chromatography and identified by thin-layer chromatography and chemical methods. The pathway of indole-3-acetic acid degradation involving indole-3-aldehyde was found to be more significant than stated in literature, and indole-3-methanol was established as the major indolic metabolite.

Metabolic reactions involving the aliphatic side chain of tryptophan were studied in the holoparasitic dicotyledonous plants Orobanche graciis Sm., 0. haea Baumg., and 0. ramosa L. Unlike known autotrophic plants, the parasite metabolized L-tryptophan directly to indole-3-carboxaldehyde, which was further converted to indole-3-methanol and indole-3-carboxylic acid. Independently, these metabolites were also formed from D-tryptophan, tryptamine, indole-3-lactic acid, and indole-3-acetic acid. As in autotrophic plants, tryptophan and tryptamine were also converted, via indole-3-acetaldehyde, to indole-3-acetic acid, indole-3-ethanol, and its glucoside. free from adhering soil and stored overnight. The plant material was cut into sections about 1 cm in length. Boiled plant material was prepared in flasks immersed in a boiling water bath for 30 min.Incubation Procedure. Substrate solutions (1 ml/g of plant material) were prepared in 0.067 M KH2PO4 (pH 4.5) at approximate concentrations of 1 mg/ml for D-and L-tryptophan, tryptamine hydrochloride, indole-3-lactic acid, and tryptophol, and 0.1 mg/ml for IAA, indole-3-acetaldehyde, indole-3-methanol, indole-3-carboxaldehyde, and indole-3-carboxylic acid. Inhibitors were added to the substrate solutions at 1 to 2 mg/ml for cycloserine and semicarbazide hydrochloride and 0.1 mg/ml for KCN. These solutions were vacuum-infiltrated (at 20 mm Hg) into the plant sections. The sections took up about one-quarter of the solutions, a great deal of which was retained in dead space, such as that in between bracts and in flower buds. Intemal substrate levels per g of metabolically active plant tissue are, thus, smaller than are those per ml of the external solutions by at least one order of magnitude. The plant material and the remaining substrate solutions were incubated separately at 22°C for 5 h, the latter with aeration.Prepurification of Plant Extracts. After incubation, the plant material was homogenized in a 2-fold (w/v) amount of methanol.The homogenate was filtered, and the residue was reextracted. The combined filtrates were stored at -10°C until used. They were then concentrated in vacuo to a few ml; methanol (50 ml) was added, and the mixture was left at -10°C overnight. The precipitate was discarded, and the filtrate was concentrated in vacuo, adjusted to 10 ml with methanol, and extracted, once with 30 ml and a second time with 15 ml of benzene. The combined extracts were evaporated and the residue extracted with 5 x

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