''Nitrobacter vulgaris'' is a rod-shaped,
Gram-negative
Gram-negative bacteria are bacteria that do not retain the crystal violet stain used in the Gram staining method of bacterial differentiation. They are characterized by their cell envelopes, which are composed of a thin peptidoglycan cell wa ...
, and a
chemoautotrophic
A Chemotroph is an organism that obtains energy by the oxidation of electron donors in their environments. These molecules can be organic ( chemoorganotrophs) or inorganic ( chemolithotrophs). The chemotroph designation is in contrast to phot ...
bacterium. It plays an important role in the
nitrogen cycle
The nitrogen cycle is the biogeochemical cycle by which nitrogen is converted into multiple chemical forms as it circulates among atmospheric, terrestrial, and marine ecosystems. The conversion of nitrogen can be carried out through both biolo ...
by oxidizing nitrite into nitrate in soil. It cannot tolerate highly alkaline (NH
4+) conditions.
NO
2- + 1/2O
2 -> NO
3-
Genomics
Nitrobacter Genome Projects(fro
Genomes OnLine DatabaseComparative Analysis of Nitrobacter Genomes(at
DOE's IMG system)
References
External links
Type strain of ''Nitrobacter vulgaris'' at Bac''Dive'' - the Bacterial Diversity Metadatabase
Nitrobacteraceae
Bacteria described in 2001
{{Nitrobacteraceae-stub