Abstract

A novel Gram-stain-negative, non-motile, rod-shaped and watermelon-red-pigmented aerobic bacterial strain, designated YIM 77969(T), was isolated from a soil sample of Jiuxiang cave, a tourism cave located in Yiliang county, Yunnan province, south-west China. Phylogenetic analysis based on the 16S rRNA gene sequence indicated that strain YIM 77969(T) belongs to the genus Hymenobacter, and was closely related to Hymenobacter tibetensis XTM003(T) (96.58 %), Hymenobacter gelipurpurascens Txg1(T) (96.02 %) and Hymenobacter xinjiangensis X2-1g(T) (95.80 %). Growth of strain YIM 77969(T) occurred at 5-35 degrees C, at pH 5.0-9.0 and in the presence of 0-1 % (w/v) NaCl. The predominant menaquinone was MK-7. The major fatty acids were iso-C-15 (:) (0), C-16 (:) (1)omega 5c and summed feature 3 (C-16 (: 1)omega 7c and/or C-16 : 1 omega 6c). The polar lipid profiles consisted of the major compound phosphatidylethanolamine, two unknown aminolipids, three unknown aminophospholipids, one glycolipid and one unknown polar lipid. Pigment analysis showed that the pigment belonged to the plectaniaxanthin series of carotenoid pigments. The genomic DNA G+C content was 55.2 mol%. On the basis of phylogenetic, phenotypic and chemotaxonomic characteristics, strain YIM 77969(T) is considered to represent a novel species of the genus Hymenobacter, for which the name Hymenobacter mucosus sp. nov. is proposed. The type strain is YIM 77969(T) (=KCTC 32567(T)=DSM 28041(T)).