Flavobacterium psychrotolerans sp. nov., a psychrotolerant bacterium isolated from Renlongba glacier on the Tibetan Plateau

Abstract

One aerobic, Gram-stain-negative, rod-shaped bacterium, designated strain RB1R5T, was isolated from Renlongba glacier in Tibet Autonomous Region, China. Growth was observed at 4–25 °C and pH 7.0–8.0. Phylogenetic analysis based on 16S rRNA gene sequences revealed that strain RB1R5T belongs to the genus Flavobacterium , and its closest relatives are Flavobacterium luteum IMCC26026T and Flavobacterium psychroterrae CCM 8827T with 97.75 and 97.42% gene sequence similarities, respectively. The average nucleotide identity and DNA–DNA hybridization values between strain RB1R5T and its closest relative Flavobacterium luteum IMCC26026T were 78.02 and 21.8 %, respectively. The major cellular fatty acids were anteiso-C15 : 0 and summed feature 3 (comprising C16:1ω7c/C16:1ω6c). The sole menaquinone was MK-6. The major phospholipid was phosphatidylethanolamine. On the basis of phenotypic, phylogenetic and chemotaxonomic characterizations, strain RB1R5T represents a novel species of the genus Flavobacterium , for which the name Flavobacterium psychrotolerans sp. nov. is proposed. The type strain is RB1R5T (=CGMCC 1.23024T=NBRC 113060T).