Salt stress sensitivity of nitrogen fixation in Enterobacter agglomerans strains

Two strains 333 to 339 of Enterobacter agglomerans were selected in the present study to evaluate the response of increasing concentrations of NaCl on growth, N(2)-fixation, and nitrogenase activity/synthesis. E. agglomerans strains 333 and 339 showed optimum growth and acetylene-reducing activity with 0.5 to 1.0% NaCl in a nitrogen-free minimal medium (NFDM) with glucose, respectively, in 28 h incubation, although both strains displayed better growth and acetylene-reducing activity with 3.0% and 2.0% NaCl after 52 h and 100 h incubation periods than the 28 h culture did. Our experiments with shiftings of salt concentrations in NFDM medium indicated that a synthesis of nitrogenase enzyme was generally more sensitive to higher concentrations of NaCl than nitrogenase activity was.