Abstract
A general equation is derived, which allows one to compute unbiased values of nitrogen uptake rates in the presence of a single nitrogen compound. In the case of simultaneous uptake of several nitrogen sources, current designs of 15N uptake measurements yield underestimates of specific uptake rates (in units of time −1) of the labeled compound. This is due to a characteristic of stable isotope techniques where, unlike radioactive techniques, a ratio of isotopic abundances is measured. A consequence of this is that reports of inhibition of nitrate or urea uptake by ammonium in studies using the 15N method may be calculation artefacts rather than physiological phenomena.
Published Version
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