Weissella fabaria sp. nov., from a Ghanaian cocoa fermentation

Abstract

Two lactic acid bacteria, strains 257T and 252, were isolated from traditional heap fermentations of Ghanaian cocoa beans. 16S rRNA gene sequence analysis of these strains allocated them to the genus Weissella, showing 99.5 % 16S rRNA gene sequence similarity towards Weissella ghanensis LMG 24286T. Whole-cell protein electrophoresis, fluorescent amplified fragment length polymorphism fingerprinting of whole genomes and biochemical tests confirmed their unique taxonomic position. DNA–DNA hybridization experiments towards their nearest phylogenetic neighbour demonstrated that the two strains represent a novel species, for which we propose the name Weissella fabaria sp. nov., with strain 257T (=LMG 24289T =DSM 21416T) as the type strain. Additional sequence analysis using pheS gene sequences proved useful for identification of all Weissella–Leuconostoc–Oenococcus species and for the recognition of the novel species.