Thermostable nature of hydrogen production by non-sulfur purple photosynthetic bacteria isolated in Thailand.

Abstract

Ten strains of non-sulfur purple photosynthetic bacteria were isolated from soil and water samples gathered in Bangkok and its surrounding area. The isolated strains from Thailand were divided into two groups, Al to A4 and BI to B6. They were identified as Rhodopseudomonas gelatinosa and Rhodopseudomonas sphaeroides, respectively. All strains grew well either at 30°C or 40°C, but failed to grow at 45°C. Strains belonging to group A had weak activities of nitrogenase (acetylene reduction) and hydrogen production, while strains of group B showed much higher activities than group A. The activities of nitrogenase and hydrogen production of isolates in Thailand were compared with those of isolates in Japan. The activities of isolated strains in Thailand at 40°C were almost equal to those at 30°C or even higher. On the other hand, both hydrogen production and the nitrogenase activity of isolates in Japan decreased significantly at 40°C as compared to the activities at 30°C. These results suggest an intrinsic th...