Pediococcus cellicola sp. nov., a novel lactic acid coccus isolated from a distilled-spirit-fermenting cellar

Abstract

Two novel Pediococcus strains, Z-1 and Z-8T, were isolated from a distilled-spirit-fermenting cellar in Hebei Province, China. The cells were Gram-positive, non-spore-forming, non-motile cocci, occurring in pairs or tetrads. The strains were facultatively anaerobic and produced 50 % (−)-d-/50 % (+)-l-lactic acid exclusively from glucose fermentation, but did not produce catalase. Both strains fermented rhamnose, ribose, xylose, lactose, maltose, trehalose and sucrose, and tolerated 10 % ethanol. The mean G+C content of the two strains was 38±1 mol% (37 mol% for the type strain, Z-8T). Phylogenetic analysis based on 16S rRNA gene sequences showed that strain Z-8T clustered within the Pediococcus damnosus–Pediococcus inopinatus–Pediococcus parvulus group, with 98·3–98·5 % 16S rRNA gene similarity. DNA–DNA relatedness between strain Z-8T and P. damnosus LMG 11484T, P. inopinatus LMG 11409T and P. parvulus LMG 11486T was 19±4, 35±5 and 31±5 %, respectively. Therefore, based on the distinctive phenotypic characteristics, and genotypic and phylogenetic analyses, a novel Pediococcus species, Pediococcus cellicola sp. nov., is proposed. The type strain is Z-8T (=AS 1.3787T=LMG 22956T).