Altererythrobacter gangjinensis sp. nov., a marine bacterium isolated from a tidal flat

A Gram-stain-negative, ochre-pigmented, strictly aerobic bacterium, designated strain KJ7(T), was isolated from a tidal flat of the Gangjin bay in South Korea. Cells were halotolerant, non-motile, catalase- and oxidase-positive rods. Growth of strain KJ7(T) was observed at 5-35 °C (optimum, 25 °C), at pH 6.0-9.5 (optimum, pH 6.5-7.0) and in the presence of 0-9 % (w/v) NaCl (optimum, 2 %). The major cellular fatty acids were C18 : 1ω7c, C17 : 1ω6c, summed feature 3 (comprising C16 : 1ω7c and/or C16 : 1ω6c) and C16 : 0. The polar lipid pattern indicated the presence of phosphatidylcholine, phosphatidylethanolamine, phosphatidylglycerol, diphosphatidylglycerol, a sphingoglycolipid, an unidentified phospholipid and two unidentified lipids. The G+C content of the genomic DNA was 60.2±0.9 mol% and the predominant respiratory quinone was Q-10. Phylogenetic analysis based on 16S rRNA gene sequences showed that strain KJ7(T) formed a phyletic lineage distinct from other members of the genus Altererythrobacter and was most closely related to Altererythrobacter luteolus SW-109(T) and Altererythrobacter namhicola KYW48(T) (95.6 and 95.0 % 16S rRNA gene sequence similarity, respectively). On the basis of phenotypic, chemotaxonomic and molecular features, strain KJ7(T) represents a novel species of the genus Altererythrobacter, for which the name Altererythrobacter gangjinensis sp. nov. is proposed. The type strain is KJ7(T) ( = KACC 16190(T) = JCM 17802(T)).