Chryseobacterium piscium sp. nov., isolated from fish of the South Atlantic Ocean off South Africa

1 School for Agriculture and Environmental Science, Central University of Technology: Free State, 1 President Brandt Street, Bloemfontein 9300, South Africa 2 Department of Microbial, Biochemical and Food Biotechnology, University of the Free State, Bloemfontein, South Africa 3 Department of Biotechnology and Food Technology, Tshwane University of Technology, Pretoria, South Africa 4 BCCM/LMG Bacteria Collection, Ghent University, K. L. Ledeganckstraat 35, Ghent B-9000, Belgium 5 Laboratorium of Microbiology, Ghent University, K. L. Ledeganckstraat 35, Ghent B-9000, Belgium Correspondence Hanli de Beer hdebeer{at}cut.ac.za Four isolates from freshly caught fish samples obtained from the South Atlantic Ocean off the South African coastline were shown to represent a novel species in the genus Chryseobacterium by means of a polyphasic taxonomic study. The four isolates had virtually identical whole-cell protein profiles, fatty acid profiles and biochemical properties. Analysis of the 16S rRNA sequence of strain LMG 23089 T revealed 99.3 and 98.9 % similarity to the 16S rRNA sequences of the type strains of Chryseobacterium balustinum and Chryseobacterium scophthalmum , respectively. Strain LMG 23089 T and the C. balustinum and C. scophthalmum type strains formed a stable lineage supported by a bootstrap value of 100 %. The levels of DNA–DNA hybridization towards these nearest phylogenetic neighbours were below 57 %. The absence of growth on MacConkey agar or at 37 °C (on nutrient agar), the capacity to grow in the presence of 5 % NaCl and the production of urease activity differentiate this novel taxon from C. balustinum and C. scophthalmum . The four isolates are formally classified as Chryseobacterium piscium sp. nov., with strain LMG 23089 T (=CCUG 51923 T ) as the type strain. Its DNA G+C content is 33.6 mol%. The GenBank/EMBL/DDBJ accession number for the 16S rRNA gene sequence of Chryseobacterium piscium LMG 23089 T is AM040439 .