Cyanide reduction by nitrogenase in intact cells of Rhodopseudomonas gelatinose Molisch.

Intact cells of Rhodopseudomonas gelatinosa, grown in N-free medium, reduce cyanide to methane and ammonia at a rate 5--8 times lower than acetylene. Cyanide reduction in whole cells is distinctly more sensitive to cyanide inhibition compared with enzyme preparations. These results are discussed in view of the exploitation of nitrogen-fixing photobacteria in the anaerobic detoxification of cyanide-containing wastewaters.