Abstract
A yeast strain isolated from chestnut tree bark collected in Guangshan County, Xinyang, Henan Province, China and a strain isolated from soil collected in Phu Wiang District, Khon Khen Province, Thailand possess identical sequences in the 26S ribosomal RNA gene D1/D2 domain and the internal transcribed spacer (ITS) region. Phylogenetic analysis showed that the two strains belong to the genus Torulaspora and are closely related to T. jiuxiensis but differed from the species by 7 (1.26%, 7 substitutions and 0 gap) and 43 (5.75 %, 31 substitutions and 12 gaps) mismatches in the D1/D2 domain and ITS region, respectively. The result suggests that the Chinese and the Thai strains represent a novel species in the genus Torulaspora, for which the name Torulaspora lindneri sp. nov. (holotype strain CGMCC 2.7783) is proposed. This species forms one or two spherical ascospores in persistent asci, usually with tapered protuberances.