Bacillus marisflavi sp. nov. and Bacillus aquimaris sp. nov., isolated from sea water of a tidal flat of the Yellow Sea in Korea

Abstract

Two Gram-positive or Gram-variable, endospore-forming moderately halophilic rods (strains TF-11T and TF-12T)were isolated from a tidal flat of the Yellow Sea in Korea and were subjected to a polyphasic taxonomic study. Strains TF-11T and TF-12T had cell-wall peptidoglycan based on meso-diaminopimelic acid. The predominant menaquinone found in the two strains was MK-7. The cellular fatty acid profiles of both strains contained large amounts of branched and saturated fatty acids. The major fatty acids were anteiso-C15:0 and iso-C15:0. The DNA G + C contents of strains TF-11T and TF-12T were respectively 49 and 38 mol%. Phylogenetic analysis based on 16S rDNA sequences showed that strains TF-11T and TF-12T fell within the radiation of the cluster comprising Bacillus species. The level of 16S rDNA sequence similarity between strains TF-11T and TF-12T was 98.3%. Strains TF-11T and TF-12T exhibited levels of 16S rDNA sequence similarity of less than 96.0 and 96.3%, respectively, to Bacillus species. The mean level of DNA-DNA relatedness between the two strains was approximately 7%. On the basis of phenotypic and phylogenetic data and genomic distinctiveness, strains TF-11T and TF-12T should be placed in the genus Bacillus as two distinct novel species, for which the names Bacillus marisflavi sp. nov. (type strain TF-11T =KCCM 41588T =JCM 11544T) and Bacillus aquimaris sp. nov. (type strain TF-12T=KCCM 41589T=JCM 11545T) are proposed.