Deinococcus terrestris sp. nov., a gamma ray- and ultraviolet-resistant bacterium isolated from soil

Strain SDU3-2^T was isolated from a soil sample collected in Shandong Province, PR China. Cells of SDU3-2^T were spherical, Gram-stain-positive, aerobic and non-motile. Cellular growth of the strain occurred at 25-45 °C, pH 5.5-8.5 and with 0-1.5 % (w/v) of NaCl. Phylogenetic analysis based on the 16S rRNA gene sequences showed that strain SDU3-2^T was closest to the type strain Deinococcus murrayi ALT-1b^T with a similarity of 95.2 %. The draft genome was 3.49 Mbp long with 69.2 mol% G+C content. Strain SDU3-2^T exhibited high resistance to gamma radiation (D₁₀ >12 kGy) and UV (D₁₀ >900 J m^-2). The strain encoded many genes for resistance to radiation and oxidative stress, which were highly conserved with other Deinococcus species, but possessed interspecific properties. The major fatty acids of SDU3-2^T cells were C_15 : 1  ω6c, C_16 : 1  ω7c/C_16 : 1  ω6c, and C_17 : 1  ω8c, the major menaquinone was menaquinone-8, and the major polar lipids were an unidentified phosphoglycolipid, four unidentified glycolipids and an unidentified phospholipid. The average nucleotide identity and DNA-DNA hybridization results further indicated that strain SDU3-2^T represents a new species in the genus Deinococcus, for which the name Deinococcus terrestris sp. nov. is proposed. The type strain is SDU3-2^T (=CGMCC 1.17147^T=KCTC 43098^T).