Description of Undibacterium oligocarboniphilum sp. nov., isolated from purified water, and Undibacterium pigrum strain CCUG 49012 as the type strain of Undibacterium parvum sp. nov., and emended descriptions of the genus Undibacterium and the species Undibacterium pigrum.

A Gram-negative, oxidase- and catalase-positive, flagellated, rod-shaped bacterium, designated strain EM 1(T), was isolated from purified water. 16S rRNA gene sequence analysis indicated that the novel strain belonged to the family Oxalobacteraceae within the class Betaproteobacteria; the closest phylogenetic relative was Undibacterium pigrum DSM 19792(T) (96.7 % gene sequence similarity). The new isolate could be distinguished from the type strain of U. pigrum DSM 19792(T) (=CCUG 49009(T)=CIP 109318(T)) and from strain CCUG 49012(T), which has been described as a second genomovar of this species, on the basis of genotypic data and several phenotypic properties. An S-layer was present in the cell envelope in U. pigrum DSM 19792(T), but was absent in strains EM 1(T) and CCUG 49012(T). Test conditions were established that enabled strain CCUG 49012(T) to be distinguished from U. pigrum DSM 19792(T). As found for U. pigrum, the main fatty acids of strains EM 1(T) and CCUG 49012(T) were summed feature 3 (including unsaturated C(16 : 1)ω7c), straight-chain C(16 : 0) and unsaturated C(18 : 1)ω7c (low percentage in strain CCUG 49012(T)), and C(10 : 0) 3-OH was the sole hydroxylated fatty acid. The polar lipid profile consisted of the predominant lipids phosphatidylethanolamine, diphosphatidylglycerol and phosphatidylglycerol. The polyamine profile was mainly composed of the major compound putrescine and moderate amounts of 2-hydroxyputrescine. In contrast to U. pigrum and strain CCUG 49012(T), where ubiquinone Q8 was reported as the sole quinone component, the quinone system of strain EM 1(T) consisted of ubiquinone Q-8 (64 %) and Q-7 (36 %). The 16S rRNA gene sequence similarity, the polar lipid profile and the absence of C(12)-hydroxylated fatty acids all indicated that strain EM 1(T) was affiliated with the genus Undibacterium. 16S rRNA gene sequence similarity values lower than 97.0 % and several differentiating phenotypic traits demonstrated that strain EM 1(T) represents a novel species for which the name Undibacterium oligocarboniphilum sp. nov. is proposed (type strain EM 1(T)=DSM 21777(T)=CCUG 57265(T)). In addition, based on previously published results and this study, a separate species, Undibacterium parvum sp. nov., is proposed with strain CCUG 49012(T) (=DSM 23061(T)=CIP 109317(T)) as the type strain.

Roche Diagnost GmbH
Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München
Veterinärmedizinische Universität Wien
Technische Universität München
Leibniz-Institut DSMZ-Deutsche Sammlung von Mikroorganismen und Zellkulturen