[Bacterial uptake of organic matter in waters of different degrees of pollution]

The assimilation of organic matter by bacteria has been shown to be more intensive in polluted waters. The maximal rate of glucose assimilation depended on the number of bacteria and appeared to be two times higher in polluted water and more than hundred times higher in estremely polluted water in comparison with clean water. The equation for the dependence of the maximal assimilation rate on the total number of bacteria in the natural populations is suggested.