| In order to estimate in situ bacterial exoproteolysis and its contribution to bacterial secondary production (BSP), we studied microbial activities (BSP and kinetics of exoproteolytic activity) in relation to dissolved combined amino acids (DCAA) during the survey of an Atlantic marine pond. In this pond, high concentrations of DCAA (mean = 4.27 mu M), probably generated by zooplankton grazing, allowed large bacterial biomass development and high production (max = 10(11) cells l(-1) and 18.8 x 10(9) cells l(-1) d(-1) respectively). Exoproteolytic enzyme activity (mean V-m = 55.9 mu M d(-1)) was tightly cou pled to bacterial production, suggesting that protein utilization was essential for bacterial growth. Calculation, according to the Michaelis-Menten... |
