Aquimarina mytili sp. nov., isolated from the gut microflora of a mussel, Mytilus coruscus, and emended description of Aquimarina macrocephali

Abstract

An orange, rod-shaped, gliding bacterium, designated strain PSC33T, was isolated from the gut microflora of a mussel collected from Gwangyang Bay, South Sea (Republic of Korea). Cells were Gram-reaction-negative, strictly aerobic, and catalase- and oxidase-positive. The major fatty acids were iso-C15 : 0, iso-C17 : 0 3-OH, iso-C15 : 1 G, C15 : 0 3-OH and iso-C17 : 1ω9c. The only isoprenoid quinone was menaquinone-6 (MK-6). The DNA G+C content of strain PSC33T was 37.9 mol%. A phylogenetic tree based on 16S rRNA gene sequences showed that strain PSC33T formed an evolutionary lineage within the radiation encompassing members of the genus Aquimarina with Aquimarina macrocephali JAMB N27T as its nearest neighbour (96.3 % sequence similarity). A number of phenotypic characteristics distinguished strain PSC33T from recognized members of the genus Aquimarina . On the basis of the data presented in this study, strain PSC33T is considered to represent a novel species of the genus Aquimarina , for which the name Aquimarina mytili sp. nov. is proposed. The type strain is PSC33T ( = KCTC 23302T = JCM 17454T). An emended description of A. macrocephali is also provided.