Shewanella woodyi sp. nov., an exclusively respiratory luminous bacterium isolated from the Alboran Sea

Thirty-four strains of nonfermentative, respiratory, luminous bacteria were isolated from samples of squid ink and seawater from depths of 200 to 300 m in the Alboran Sea. Although these strains had a few properties similar to properties of Shewanella (Alteromonas) hanedai, they did not cluster phenotypically with any previously described bacterium. The nucleotide sequence of a 740-bp segment of luxA was not homologous with other known luxA sequences but clustered with the luxA sequences of Shewanella hanedai, Vibrio logei, Vibrio fischeri, and Photobacterium species. The 16S RNA gene from two strains was sequenced and was found to be most closely related to the S. hanedai 16S RNA gene. Based on the differences observed, we describe the new isolates as members of new species, Shewanella woodyi sp. nov. Strain ATCC 51908 (= MS32) is the type strain of this new species.