Sierra Nevada Aquatic Research Laboratory

09 May, 05 AM - 11 May, 11 AM

In nature, bacteria are rarely dominant with respect to biomass, but through their cycling of organic matter they are important elements in the global transformation of matter. One aspect of bacterial life that is often ignored, is their contribution of organic matter from cell walls of dead bacteria. A major component in bacterial cell walls is the polymer compund peptidoglycan, consisting of N acetylglucosamine and N acetylmuramic acid, connected by short peptides. Peptidoglycan appears to be recalcitrant to degradation to many microbes. This may explain why peptidoglycan accumulates in some environments. Previous measurements of peptidoglycan in depth profiles of Mono Lake indicate that bacterial cell walls build up in the anoxic layer. This may be due to the unique chemical environment in the lake or to abundance of specific microbial populations. In the present project, concentrations of cell wall components will be studied in oxic-anoxic strata and will be related to bacterial growth rates and to production of extracellular enzymes. Results from the study hopefully will help understand the mechanisms that control degradation of peptidoglycan in natural environments.

Visit #6935 @Sierra Nevada Aquatic Research Laboratory

Approved

Under Project # 5197 | Research

Degradation of bacterial cell wall components in Mono Lake

faculty - Royal Veterinary and Agricultural University

Reservation Members(s)

Niels Jorgensen May 9 - 11, 2005 (3 days)

Reserve Resources(s) | Create Invoice

Dorm 1 May 9 - 11, 2005
Lab 7a 1 May 9 - 11, 2005