Nitrogen Obsession
by Roberto — A brief history of how organisms get their nitrogen.
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The Nitroplast, a Nitrogen-Fixing Organelle
by Mechas — The ability to fix nitrogen is usually regarded as a property of only a few diazotrophic bacteria and archaea. A new study now shows that some eukaryotes may be capable of fixing nitrogen via the newly described nitroplast, an organelle that has evolved from an endosymbiont.
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Diazomania II – Trichodesmium
by Roberto — When it comes to expansive oligotrophic environments replete with microbial life, the surfaces of Earth's oceans are hard to beat. Therein, most of the primary production comes from a rich diversity of photosynthetic microbes. There's plenty of light and carbon dioxide, so growth is therefore limited by something else.
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Diazomania I – A Bird's‑Eye View of the Nitrogen Cycle
by Roberto — Here's a good way to get friends or relatives interested in microbiology – if they aren't already. Tell them to take a deep breath and to let it out. Then ask them these questions: "Mostly, what went into your lungs?", and "What happened to it while in your lungs?" Regardless of...
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Of Terms in Biology: Diazotroph
by Roberto — It all started with my wanting to write a post on Frankia. I did what I always do when thinking of a new post. I googled 'small things considered frankia'. Nothing. Good start, I can dive into the topic. Next, I thought let's put Frankia in the context of prior posts. I googled 'small things considered rhizobium'. Nothing again...
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Take a Deep Breath of... Methane
by Christoph — If you were faced with the task of preparing a lecture series on "general bacterial physiology", you could easily choose Pseudomonas aeruginosa as your companion, your model organism, to cover (almost) every topic. Yet, when it comes to metabolic versatility, you could also think of Rhodopseudomonas palustris as an alternative. This Alphaproteobacterium of the...
