Actinophytocola xinjiangensis sp. nov., isolated from virgin forest soil

An aerobic, non-motile actinobacterium, strain QAIII60(T), was isolated from virgin forest soil of Kanas Nature Reserve, Xinjiang, north-west China. The isolate produced a very scant aerial mycelium that fragmented into cylindrical spores and a non-fragmented substrate mycelium with occasional septa. Whole-cell hydrolysates contained meso-diaminopimelic acid, arabinose, galactose, glucose, ribose and rhamnose (trace). The diagnostic polar lipids were diphosphatidylglycerol, phosphatidylethanolamine, hydroxyphosphatidylethanolamine and ninhydrin-positive phosphoglycolipids. The major cellular fatty acids were iso-C(16:0), iso-C(14:0), iso-C(16:1) H and C(17:1)ω6c. The isoprenoid quinones consisted of MK-9(H(4)) and MK-10(H(2)). The G+C content of the genomic DNA was 72.5 mol%. Phylogenetic analysis based on 16S rRNA gene sequences showed that strain QAIII60(T) formed a distinct phyletic line that was most closely, albeit loosely, associated with the genus Actinophytocola. A number of physiological characteristics differentiated the isolate from members of the genus Actinophytocola. On the basis of these data, we propose that strain QAIII60(T) (=CGMCC 4.4663(T) =NBRC 106673(T)) be assigned as the type strain of a novel species, Actinophytocola xinjiangensis sp. nov.