Abstract
IN previous articles1–3 attention was directed to the fact that high pressures of pure oxygen have a specific effect on the metabolism of cells of various kinds. In the tissues of higher plants the effect was shown to be the stopping of carbon dioxide output, and this, it was postulated, was the result of the inactivation of the associated enzyme systems. In some fungi and in two species of bacteria it was shown also that exposure to 10 atm. pressure of pure oxygen completely suppressed the growth of the organisms. However, unlike the tissues of higher plants, the fungi, when removed from the pressure and returned to air, recovered and began to grow apparently quite normally if the period of exposure were not too long. In these cases a period of some days normally elapsed before the growth of the colonies in air began again. All the fungi were grown on 2.5 per cent malt agar in Petri dishes and the temperature was maintained at 25° C in a constant-temperature room or in an incubator.
This is a preview of subscription content, access via your institution
Access options
Subscribe to this journal
Receive 51 print issues and online access
$199.00 per year
only $3.90 per issue
Buy this article
- Purchase on Springer Link
- Instant access to full article PDF
Prices may be subject to local taxes which are calculated during checkout
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Caldwell, J., Ph.D. thesis (Cambridge, 1931).
Caldwell, J., Nature, 197, 777 (1963).
Caldwell, J., Nature, 201, 514 (1964).
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
CALDWELL, J. Effects of High Partial Pressures of Oxygen on Fungi and Bacteria. Nature 206, 321–323 (1965). https://doi.org/10.1038/206321a0
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/206321a0
This article is cited by
-
Waterless sterilization of clinical solid waste using supercritical carbon dioxide: fungal spores inactivation mechanisms, optimization and artificial neural network models
Biomass Conversion and Biorefinery (2023)
-
Supercritical Carbon Dioxide as Non-Thermal Alternative Technology for Safe Handling of Clinical Wastes
Environmental Processes (2015)
-
Oxygen stress reduces zoospore survival of Phytophthora species in a simulated aquatic system
BMC Microbiology (2014)
Comments
By submitting a comment you agree to abide by our Terms and Community Guidelines. If you find something abusive or that does not comply with our terms or guidelines please flag it as inappropriate.