Devosia limi sp. nov., isolated from a nitrifying inoculum

Laboratory of Microbiology, Department of Biochemistry, Physiology and Microbiology, Ghent University, K.L. Ledeganckstraat 35, B-9000 Gent, Belgium Correspondence Bram Vanparys bram.vanparys{at}ugent.be A Gram-negative, rod-shaped, non-spore-forming bacteria was isolated from a nitrifying inoculum. On the basis of 16S rRNA gene sequence similarity, this strain, designated LMG 22951 T , was shown to belong to the ‘ Alphaproteobacteria ’ and to be related to Devosia neptuniae (97·4 %) and Devosia riboflavina (97·0 %). The results of DNA–DNA hybridization, analysis of fatty acid composition, SDS-PAGE, physiological and biochemical tests allowed genotypic and phenotypic differentiation of LMG 22951 T from the two recognized Devosia species. LMG 22951 T therefore represents a novel species within this genus, for which the name Devosia limi is proposed. The type strain is LMG 22951 T (=DSM 17137 T ). Published online ahead of print on 6 May 2005 as DOI 10.1099/ijs.0.63714-0. The GenBank/EMBL/DDBJ accession number for the 16S rRNA gene sequence of strain LMG 22951 T is AJ786801 .