[Hydrogenase activity of Rhodopseudomonas capsulata growing on organic media]

When Rhodopseudomonas capsulata B10 grows in media with different organic compounds, the hydrogenase activity estimated both by the evolution and uptake of H2 is lowest in cells taken from the middle of the exponential growth phase, and highest in cells from the beginning of the stationary phase. Cells grown in a medium containing malate have a higher hydrogenase activity than those cultivated in a medium with lactate or other compounds (900 and 20 nmoles of H2 per 1 min per 1 mg of protein, respectively). In the experiments with chloramphenicol (10(-5) M), organic compounds (not CO2) were shown to repress hydrogenase synthesis. When the cells were incubated in a medium without an organic substrate or in its presence, the exogenous H2 or H2 evolved as the result of nitrogenase action causes an increase in the activity of hydrogenase.