280 
Journal oj Agricultural Research 
Vol. XXX, No, 9 
nitrogen and carbon. The reactions 
taking place were followed by measur¬ 
ing the residual amino nitrogen formed 
from decomposition of casein, forma¬ 
tion and accumulation of ammonia, 
amount of growth produced by the 
organisms, and disappearance of dex¬ 
trose in the medium, wherever it has 
been used. 
The results indicate that not all 
organisms attack proteins and amino 
acids alike. The two fungi Trich - 
oderma koningi and Zygorhynchus 
molleri utilized the various amino 
acids and the protein both as sources 
of carbon and nitrogen, the amount of 
growth and ammonia accumulation 
depending, however, in the absence of 
available carbohydrates, upon the 
available carbon in the amino acid 
molecule. A definite relation was 
found to exist between the carbon 
(available) content of the amino acid 
molecule and the amount of ammonia 
accumulating. The two bacteria 
tested, B. cereus and Bad. fluorescens, 
behaved differently; the first was un¬ 
able to attack glycocoll, alanine, and 
phenylalanine, while glutamic acid 
and asparagine were acted upon to a 
limited extent, and casein and other 
native proteins were decomposed very 
rapidly. The Bad. fluorescens was 
unable to decompose casein, but acted 
upon the various amino acids used very 
readily. By combining the two organ¬ 
isms in casein media, the protein was 
decomposed very rapidly to ammonia, 
the B. cereus hydrolyzing the casein 
chiefly to protein derivatives and the 
Bad. fluorescens decomposing the latter 
to ammonia. 
Ammonia accumulation can not be 
used as an index of the proteolytic 
activities of microorganisms, when the 
carbon content of the medium is not 
considered; an organism may decom¬ 
pose a much larger amount of protein 
in. the presence of an available carbo¬ 
hydrate, but produce a much smaller 
amount of ammonia. 
The Actinomyces was found to be 
capable of utilizing amino acids and 
proteins as sources of energy, thus 
allowing an accumulation of ammonia, 
even in the presence of dextrose. 
Ammonia formation by microorgan¬ 
isms from amino acids depends upon 
the carbon-nitrogen ratio of the com¬ 
pound, as well as upon the nature of 
the organism, as influenced by its 
utilization of energy. 
LITERATURE CITED 
(1) Berman, N., and Rettger, L. F. 
1918. THE INFLUENCE OF CARBOHYDRATE ON THE 
NITROGEN METABOLISM OF BACTERIA. Jour. 
Bact. 3 : 389-402. 
(2) BlanchetiEre, A. 
1920. ACTION DU BACILLE FLUORESCENT LIQUfe- 
FIANT DE FLtlGGE SUR CERTAINS AMINO-ACIDES 
EN MILIEU CHIMIQUEMENT DEFINI. Bui. SOC. 
Chim. Biol. 2 : 29-36. 
(3) Butkevitsch, V. 
1916. AMMONIA AS A PRODUCT OF TRANSFORMA¬ 
TION OF PROTEINS BY MOLDS AND CONDITIONS 
of its formation. Reprint from collection of 
papers in the name of K. A. Timiriaziev. 43 p. 
Moskau. 
(4) Conn, H. J. 
1917. SOIL FLORA STUDIES. HI. SPORE-FORMING 
bacteria in soil. N. Y. State Agr. Exp. Sta. 
Tech. Bui. 58, 16 p., illus. 
(5) DeBord, G. G. 
1923. CERTAIN PHASES OF NITROGENOUS META¬ 
BOLISM IN BACTERIAL CULTURES. Jour. Bact. 
8 : 7-45, illus. 
(6) Ehrlich, F. 
1914. tlBER ASYMMETRISCHE UND SYMMETRISCHE 
EINWIRKUNG VON HEFE AUF RACEMVERBIND- 
UNGEN NATtlRUCH VORKOMMENDER AMINO- 
sauren. Biochem. Ztschr. 63 : 379-401. 
(7) Folin, O. 
1902-03. EINE NEUE METHODE ZUR BESTIMMUNG 
DES AMMONIAKS IM HARNE UND ANDEREN 
THIERISCHEN FLtlSSIGKEITEN. Ztschr. Physiol. 
Chem. (1902) 37 : 161-176, illus. 
( 8 ) -- 
1922. A SYSTEM OF BLOOD ANALYSIS. SUPPLE¬ 
MENT III. A NEW COLORIMETRIC METHOD FOR 
THE DETERMINATION OF THE AMINO-ACID 
nitrogen in blood. Jour. Biol. Chem. 51: 
377-391. 
(9) ITANO, A. 
1916. THE RELATION OF HYDROGEN ION CON¬ 
CENTRATION OF MEDIA TO THE PROTEOLYTIC 
ACTIVITY OF BACILLUS SUBTILIS. MaSS. Agr. 
Exp. Sta. Bui. 167 : 139-177, illus. 
(10) Jodidi, S. L. 
1912. AMINO ACIDS AND ACID AMIDES AS SOURCES 
of ammonia in soils. Iowa Agr. Exp. Sta. 
Research Bui. 9 : 327-362, illus. 
(11) Kelley, W. P. 
1915. THE BIOCHEMICAL DECOMPOSITION OF 
nitrogenous substances in soils. Hawaii 
Agr. Exp. Sta. Bui. 39, 25 p., illus. 
(12) Kendall, A. I., and Walker, A. W. 
1915. OBSERVATIONS ON THE PROTEOLYTIC EN 
ZYME OF BACILLUS PROTEUS. STUDIES IN BAC 
TERIAL METABOLISM, XL. JOUr. Infect. Dis 
eases 17 : 442-453. 
(13) - 
1922. THE SIGNIFICANCE AND QUANTITATIVE 
MEASUREMENT OF THE NITROGENOUS META¬ 
BOLISM OF BACTERIA. STUDIES IN BACTERIAL- 
metabolism. Lvn. Jour. Infect. Diseases 30: 
211-224. 
(14) Kruse, W. 
1910. ALLGEMEINE MIKROBIOLOGIE. DIE LEHRE 
VOM STOFF-UND KRAFTWECHSEL DER KLEIN- 
WESEN FtlR &RZTE UND NATUBFORSCHER. 1184 
p. Leipzig. 
(15) Lathrop, E. C. 
1917. the organic nitrogen compounds of 
soils and fertilizers. Jour. Franklin Inst. 
183 : 169-206, 308-321, 465-498, illus. 
(16) Levene, P. A., and Van Slyke, D. D. 
1912. THE COMPOSITION AND PROPERTIES OF 
GLYCOCOLL PICRATE AND THE SEPARATION OF 
glycocoll from alanine. Jour. Biol. Chem. 
12 : 285-294. , 
(17) Mabchal, E. 
1893. SUR LA PRODUCTION DE L’AMMONIAQUE 
DANS LE SOL PAR LES MICROBES. Bui. Acad. 
Roy. Belg. (s. 3, t. 25) 63 : 727-771, illus. 
