Robert Pore's Ag Blog

Nitrogen gas is converted to ammonia fertilizer by a chemical process that involves high temperature and high pressure. Nature does the same thing at ambient temperature and pressure. The process, called nitrogen fixation, is essential to life as it provides nutrients to plant life.

A research team from Utah State University, Virginia Tech, and Northwestern University asked whether the biological process, carried out by microbes that contain the enzyme nitrogenase, follows the same pathway as recently reported chemical methods. Their research method resulted in the ability to witness steps in the biological process that enables some microorganisms to convert atmospheric nitrogen to nutrients.

The research is reported in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Science (PNAS) Special Feature Issue on Nitrogen Fixation, in the invited article, "A methyldiazene (HN=N-CH3) derived species bound to the nitrogenase active-site FeMo cofactor: Implications for mechanism," by Brett M. Barney of Utah State, Dmitriy Lukoyanov and Tran-Chin Yang of Northwestern, Dennis Dean at Virginia Tech, Brian M. Hoffman of Northwestern, and Lance C. Seefeldt of Utah State.

Dean, director of the Fralin Biotechnology Center at Virginia Tech, performed the genetics and molecular biology. The Utah Department of Chemistry and Biochemistry performed the biochemistry and the biophysics research was carried out in the Northwestern Department of Chemistry.

An enzyme is a protein that induces chemical changes in another substance. "Such reactions involve several stages in the reduction pathway," Dean said. "Nitrogenase activity is particularly complex because there are many intermediate stages between nitrogen gas (N2) and ammonia (NH3) that require adding electrons and protons."

In order to trap the process at a specific stage, the researchers synthesized a mimic of an intermediate compound in the pathway, and then followed its progress. The PNAS article talks about the challenge of identifying, trapping, synthesizing, and inserting the mimic and methods for observing the reduction of N2.

Hoffman, Dean and Seefeldt have been working for years to figure out how to trap and characterize nitrogenase intermediates. Their success was reported in the Journal of the American Chemical Society and in Chemical and Engineering News in 2005. So, does the biological process follow the same pathway as the chemical process? "Our research suggests it does not," said Dean. "Nature appears to do it differently."

LINCOLN — Based on November 1 conditions, Nebraska’s corn crop is
forecast at 1.23 billion bushels, 1 percent below last month and 3 percent below last year, according to USDA’s National Agricultural Statistics Service, Nebraska Field Office. Yield is forecast at 159 bushels per acre, down 2 bushels from last month and 7 bushels below 2004’s record high.

Soybean production in Nebraska is forecast at 255 million bushels, unchanged from last month, 8 percent above last year and highest on record. Yield is forecast at 51 bushels per acre, unchanged from last month and 0.5 bushel above the previous high of 50.5 bushels per acre in 2005.

Sorghum production in Nebraska is forecast at 20.8 million bushels, down 1 percent from October and 4 percent below last year. Yield is forecast at 80 bushels per acre, down 1 bushel from the previous month and down 7 bushels from last year.

Sugarbeet production of 1.34 million tons is up 5 percent from last month and up 45 percent from 2005. Potato production in Nebraska is forecast at 8.69 million hundredweight, up 5 percent from a year ago.

AURORA – The Aurora Cooperative, a leading grain marketer and agricultural supplier in central Nebraska and northern Kansas, today announced the financial results of the company’s fiscal year that ended August 31, 2006.

Sales of $330 million were recorded for fiscal 2006 which represent a 17 percent increase over the previous year. Sales volume increased in nearly all core businesses, with higher energy and fertilizer commodity prices also impacting total dollar sales.

Local savings from the core businesses of grain, agronomy, energy, and feed was $4.75 million. Additional savings of $3.77 million was generated from investments in regional cooperatives, ethanol, and popcorn enterprises for a total savings of $8.52 million before income taxes.

Patronage refunds of $5.7 million have been authorized to be paid as 40 percent cash and 60 percent deferred equity. In addition, the Aurora Cooperative revolved $1.6 million of members’ equity in fiscal 2006, bringing the total cash payments to members to $3.8 million, the highest single-year level in the 98-year history of the company.

“The owners of the Aurora Cooperative are world class in their ability to produce agricultural products for the world,” said George Hohwieler, President and CEO of the Aurora Cooperative. “It’s our commitment to provide products, services, technology, and information that can help our owners continue to win in the global marketplace. By choosing to utilize their company’s assets and services, our owners have recognized value in their farming operations, and now reap the ownership benefits of record dividends and equity revolvement. That’s what a cooperative is all about.”