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 )