Aquibacillus saliphilus sp. nov., a moderately halophilic bacterium isolated from a grey saltern

A novel moderately halophilic bacterium, designated strain KHM2^T, was isolated from the sediment of a grey solar saltern located on Sinui Island, Shinan, Republic of Korea. Cells were rod-shaped, endospore-forming, Gram-stain-positive, motile and facultative anaerobic. Strain KHM2^T performed anaerobic respiration using nitrates and did not produce glucose acids, indicating the absence of fermentation. Strain KHM2^T grew at 10-45 °C (optimum, 37 °C), pH 6.0-10.0 (optimum, pH 8.0) and with 1.0-20.0 % (w/v) NaCl (optimum, 10.0%). Based on 16S rRNA gene sequence similarity and chemotaxonomic properties, strain KHM2^T was assigned to the genus Aquibacillus, with high 16S rRNA gene sequence similarity to Aquibacillus halophilus B6B^T (98.2%) and less than 96.8 % similarity to the other recognized members of the genus Aquibacillus. The polar lipid profile consisted of diphosphatidylglycerol (DPG), phosphatidylglycerol (PG) and one unidentified phospholipid (PL). Major fatty acids were anteiso-C_15 : 0 and anteiso-C_17 : 0. The average nucleotide identity and digital DNA-DNA hybridization values of strain KHM2^T with A. halophilus B6B^T were 77.6 and 22.0 %, respectively. Based on the results of polyphasic analysis, strain KHM2^T is proposed to represent a bacterial species within the genus Aquibacillus with the name Aquibacillus saliphilus sp. nov. The type strain is KHM2^T (=KACC 19068^T=NBRC 112577^T).