T913] CURRENT LITERATURE gI 
nitrogen than the first crops on the same solution. No general conclusions were 
deducible from a quantitative study of the residual culture fluid. 
RitTer® in confirmation of results published in a former paper emphasizes 
the fact that Aspergillus glaucus, Cladosporium herbarum, and Mucor racemosus, 
known as “nitrate fungi’ on account of their supposed preference for nitrogen 
from the nitrate ion, thrive equally well or better on ammonium salts. The 
slight alkalinity arising in cultures with potassium nitrate is, according to him, 
not the cause of the depression of growth in such cultures. The assimilation 
of nitrogen from nitrates takes place by means of a reduction of the nitrates to 
nitrites, as in bacteria and the higher plants. Since nitrites are not stable 
in acid solutions, it is necessary to keep the cultures neutral or alkaline to 
show the formation of nitrites. In Aas Seely nitrites resulting from the 
reduction of nitrates were shown to occ 
OsSOWICz" examined a number of nee with reference to their ability to 
obtain nitrogen from calcium nitrid supplied in a nutrient solution containing 
per liter 2.5 i dipotassium hydrogen phosphate, 0.5 gms. magnesium 
sulphate, 25 gms. cane sugar, and 5 gms. tartaric acid. The calcium nitrid 
was added after ssdashlaeaiias The fungi used were Botrytis bassiana, Penicil- 
lium crustaceum, P. brevicaule, Mucor Boidin, Cladosporium herbarum, Phy- 
tophthora infestans, Aspergillus glaucus, A. niger, Isaria farinosa, and a species 
of Fusisporium. Of these only Phytophthora infestans, Botrytis bassiana, and 
Mucor Boidin showed any growth after three months. Phytophthora infestans 
caused the production of ammonia in the culture medium, but in the cultures 
of the other two fungi ammonia could not be detected with Nessler’s reagent. 
The poisonous effect of calcium nitrid was shown by the feeble growth of the 
foregoing fungi on solutions containing calcium nitrid and ammonium chloride 
compared with their growth on solutions containing ammonium chloride alone 
as a source of nitrogen. 
The availability of different phosphorus compounds as sources of phos- 
phorus for Aspergillus niger has been studied by Dox.* Of the inorganic 
compounds he finds that orthophosphate, pyrophosphate, and metaphosphate 
serve well as sources of phosphorus, while hypophosphite and phosphite con- 
‘taining trivalent phosphorus, while not toxic, do not supply phosphorus in an 
available form. Several organic substances containing phosphorus were 
found to be excellent sources of phosphorus for the mold. The substances 
tested were phytin, sodium glycerinophosphate, sodium nucleinate, lecithin, 
casein, and ovovitellin. The author suggests that in all these cases phosphoric 
r, G. E., Ammoniak und ~~ als Stickstoffquelle fiir Schimmelpilze. 
\ Ber. aitery ‘Bot. Gesclls. 292570-577- IQII: 
*7 Kossowicz, A., Uber das — = Schimmelpilze zu Kalkstickstoff. 
Zeitschr. Ganimesphysiclogie E2394, 325. 
* Dox, A. W., The phosphorus mnie of Aspergillus niger. Journ. Biol. 
Chem. 10:77-80. 1911. 
