The Molecular Nature of Organic Matter in Lakes and Oceans, with Lesser Reference to Sewage and Terrestrial Soils
Authors: Vallentyne J. R. 
Published: April 2011

The compounds listed below have been isolated from, or identified in, the sources under review. Where there is still some question as to the exact identity, the name of the compound is followed by a question mark. Compounds identified on the basis of inadequate data are not listed here.Seston (freshwater and marine)Free: aphanicin, aphanin (=myxoxanthin), arginine, biotin (?), β-carotene, choline, cystine, flavacin, fructose, glucose, hentriacontane (?), histidine, lysine, maltose, monomethylamine, niacin, sucrose, thiamin, trimethylamine, tryptophan, tyrosine, vitamin A, vitamins D, vitamins B12.In hydrolysates:Sugars: galactose, glucose, rhamnose, xylose.Amino acids: α-alanine, arginine, aspartic acid, glutamic acid, glycine, histidine, hydroxyproline, leucine, phenylalanine, proline, tryptophan, tyrosine, valine.Other compounds: aphanizophyll (=myxoxanthophyll?), astacene, cetyl alcohol, cholesterol (?), glucuronic acid, glycerol, lutein, peridinin.Dissolved organic matter (freshwater and marine)Free: biotin, dehydroascorbic acid, glucose, niacin (?), sucrose, thiamin, vitamins B12.In hydrolysates: α-alanine, aspartic acid, cystine, glutamic acid, glycine, histidine, tryptophan, tyrosine.Aquatic sediments (freshwater and marine)Free:Sugars: arabinose, fructose, fucose, galactose, glucose, maltose, ribose, sucrose, xylose.Amino acids: α-alanine, glutamic acid.Carotenoids: α-carotene, β-carotene, flavorhodin (?), leprotene (?), myxoxanthin (?), rhodopurpurin (?), rhodoviolascin, torulene (?).Other compounds: acetic acid, biotin, n-butyric acid, cellulose, formic acid, pentatriacontane, β-sitosterol, thiamin (?), trimethylamine, tritriacontane, vitamins B12.In hydrolysates:Sugars: arabinose, fructose (?), fucose, galactose, glucose, mannose, rhamnose, ribose, xylose.Amino acids: α-alanine, arginine, aspartic acid, cystine, glutamic acid, glycine, histidine, isoleucine, leucine, lysine, serine, tyrosine, valine.Carotenoids: antheraxanthin (?), fucoxanthin (?), petaloxanthin (?), sulcatoxanthin (?), zeaxanthin (?).Other compounds: adenine, arachidic acid, behenic acid, caproic acid, caprylic acid, cerotic acid, cytosine, galacturonic acid, guanine, heptacosanoic acid, heptacosanol, heptoic acid, montanic acid, uracil.Sewage and Activated SludgeFree: acetic acid, biotin, n-butyric acid, folic acid (?), indole (?), niacin (?), pantothenic acid (?), propionic acid, pyridoxine (?), riboflavin (?), skatole (?), thiamin, tryptophan, tyrosine, n-valeric acid (?), vitamins B12.Terrestrial SoilsFree:Sugars: no free sugars identified.Amino acids: α-alanine, γ-aminobutyric acid, arginine, asparagine, aspartic acid, glutamic acid, glutamine, glycine, leucine and/or isoleucine, lysine, serine, threonine, valine.Other acids: acetic acid, acrylic acid, p-aminobenzoic acid (?), benzoic acid, 3,5-cresotic acid, α-crotonic acid, cyanuric acid, 8,9-dihydroxystearic acid, formic acid, α-hydroxystearic acid, lignoceric acid, oxalic acid, α-picoline-γ-carboxylic acid, saccharic acid, succinic acid.Other compounds: adenine, allantoin, biotin, chrysene, creatinine, cytosine, hentriacontane, hypoxanthine, inositol, mannitol, methylglyoxal, niacin (?), phytin, pyridoxine (?), riboflavin (?), salicylic aldehyde, thiamin, trithiobenzaldehyde, vanillin, vitamins B12, xanthine.In hydrolysates:Sugars: arabinose, fucose, galactose, glucose, mannose, rhamnose, ribose, xylose.Amino acids: α-alanine, β-alanine, α-aminobutyric acid, γ-aminobutyric acid, arginine, aspartic acid, cystine (?), cysteic acid, α,ε-diaminopimelic acid, glutamic acid, glycine, histidine, hydroxyproline, isoleucine, leucine, lysine, methionine (?), methionine sulphoxide, proline, phenylalanine, serine, threonine, tyrosine, valine.Other compounds: galactosamine, galacturonic acid, glucosamine, glucuronic acid, glycerol, guanine, inositol.Partially characterized organic matter fractions from freshwater and marine seston, water and mud are also reviewed. Special attention is devoted to algal toxins and to the occurrence and activity of free enzymes in nature.The number of adequately identified organic compounds in each of the sources under review is: seston, 45; water, 15; sewage, 14; aquatic sediments, 62; terrestrial soils, 76.