Staphylococcus hsinchuensis sp. nov., Isolated from Soymilk

A novel coagulase-negative Staphylococcus strain (H164^T) was isolated from soymilk in Taiwan. Comparative sequence analysis of the 16S rRNA gene revealed that the H164^T strain is a member of the genus Staphylococcus. We used multilocus sequence analysis (MLSA) and phylogenomic analyses to demonstrate that the novel strain was closely related to Staphylococcus gallinarum, Staphylococcus nepalensis, Staphylococcus cohnii, and Staphylococcus urealyuticus. The average nucleotide identity and digital DNA-DNA hybridization values between H164^T and its closest relatives were <95% and <70%, respectively. The H164^T strain could also be distinguished from its closest relatives by the fermentation of _d-fructose, _d-maltose, _d-trehalose, and _d-mannitol, as well as by the activities of α-glucosidase and alkaline phosphatase. The major cellular fatty acids were C15:0 iso and C15:0 anteiso, and the predominant menaquinones were MK-7 and MK-8, respectively. The major cellular fatty acids and predominant menaquinones were C_15:0 iso and C_15:0 anteiso and MK-7 and MK-8, respectively. In conclusion, this strain represents a novel species, named Staphylococcus hsinchuensis sp. nov., with the type strain H164^T (=BCRC 81404^T = NBRC 116174^T).