Prevalence, complete genome, and metabolic potentials of a phylogenetically novel cyanobacterial symbiont in the coral-killing sponge, Terpios hoshinota.

Terpios hoshinota is an aggressive, space-competing sponge that kills various stony corals. Outbreaks of this species have led to intense damage to coral reefs in many locations. Here, the first large-scale 16S rRNA gene survey across three oceans revealed that bacteria related to the taxa Prochloron, Endozoicomonas, SAR116, Ruegeria, and unclassified Proteobacteria were prevalent in T. hoshinota. A Prochloron-related bacterium was the most dominant and prevalent cyanobacterium in T. hoshinota. The complete genome of this uncultivated cyanobacterium and pigment analysis demonstrated that it has phycobiliproteins and lacks chlorophyll b, which is inconsistent with the definition of Prochloron. Furthermore, the cyanobacterium was phylogenetically distinct from Prochloron, strongly suggesting that it should be a sister taxon to Prochloron. Therefore, we proposed this symbiotic cyanobacterium as a novel species under the new genus Candidatus Paraprochloron terpiosi. Comparative genomic analyses revealed that 'Paraprochloron' and Prochloron exhibit distinct genomic features and DNA replication machinery. We also characterized the metabolic potentials of 'Paraprochloron terpiosi' in carbon and nitrogen cycling and propose a model for interactions between it and T. hoshinota. This study builds a foundation for the study of the T. hoshinota microbiome and paves the way for better understanding of ecosystems involving this coral-killing sponge.

Molecular phylogeny of some coral species from the Persian Gulf.

As evolutionary relationships among some coral species still remain unclear, studies on unstudied area such as the Persian Gulf (PG), as part of the western Indo-Pacific, may reveal a better understanding of phylogenetic positions and relationships of corals. In the present study, the phylogenetic relationships of eight common coral species (Favites pentagona, Platygyra daedalea, Cyphastrea microphthalma, Siderastrea savignyana, Pavona decussata, Pavona cactus, Goniopora columna, and Goniopora djiboutiensis) collected from two Iranian Islands were compared with the congeneric sequences from the Indo-Pacific (IP) using rDNA region. The result shows that some coral species which were hitherto considered as representatives of widespread species from IP are related to distinct lineages. Further, it appears that morphological convergence between the taxa leads to an underestimation of the real coral species diversity in the PG. The current study is the first attempt to investigate the phylogenetic position of coral species from the PG in comparison to their counterparts from the IP. As conservation planning hinges on the identification of species, taxonomic revisions have to be undertaken in order to obtain a more reliable picture of coral species diversity in the PG.

BioTIME: A database of biodiversity time series for the Anthropocene.

MOTIVATION: The BioTIME database contains raw data on species identities and abundances in ecological assemblages through time. These data enable users to calculate temporal trends in biodiversity within and amongst assemblages using a broad range of metrics. BioTIME is being developed as a community-led open-source database of biodiversity time series. Our goal is to accelerate and facilitate quantitative analysis of temporal patterns of biodiversity in the Anthropocene. MAIN TYPES OF VARIABLES INCLUDED: The database contains 8,777,413 species abundance records, from assemblages consistently sampled for a minimum of 2 years, which need not necessarily be consecutive. In addition, the database contains metadata relating to sampling methodology and contextual information about each record. SPATIAL LOCATION AND GRAIN: BioTIME is a global database of 547,161 unique sampling locations spanning the marine, freshwater and terrestrial realms. Grain size varies across datasets from 0.0000000158 km2 (158 cm2) to 100 km2 (1,000,000,000,000 cm2). TIME PERIOD AND GRAIN: BioTIME records span from 1874 to 2016. The minimal temporal grain across all datasets in BioTIME is a year. MAJOR TAXA AND LEVEL OF MEASUREMENT: BioTIME includes data from 44,440 species across the plant and animal kingdoms, ranging from plants, plankton and terrestrial invertebrates to small and large vertebrates. SOFTWARE FORMAT: .csv and .SQL.

Species delimitation in the reef coral genera Echinophyllia and Oxypora (Scleractinia, Lobophylliidae) with a description of two new species.

Scleractinian corals are affected by environment-induced phenotypic plasticity and intraspecific morphological variation caused by genotype. In an effort to identify new strategies for resolving this taxonomic issue, we applied a molecular approach for species evaluation to two closely related genera, Echinophyllia and Oxypora, for which few molecular data are available. A robust multi-locus phylogeny using DNA sequence data across four loci of both mitochondrial (COI, ATP6-NAD4) and nuclear (histone H3, ITS region) origin from 109 coral colonies was coupled with three independent putative species delimitation methods based on barcoding threshold (ABGD) and coalescence theory (PTP, GMYC). Observed overall congruence across multiple genetic analyses distinguished two traditional species (E. echinoporoides and O. convoluta), a species complex composed of E. aspera, E. orpheensis, E. tarae, and O. glabra, whereas O. lacera and E. echinata were indistinguishable with the sequenced loci. The combination of molecular species delimitation approaches and skeletal character observations allowed the description of two new reef coral species, E. bulbosa sp. n. from the Red Sea and E. gallii sp. n. from the Maldives and Mayotte. This work demonstrated the efficiency of multi-locus phylogenetic analyses and recently developed molecular species delimitation approaches as valuable tools to disentangle taxonomic issues caused by morphological ambiguities and to re-assess the diversity of scleractinian corals.

Thalassotalea montiporae sp. nov., isolated from the encrusting pore coral Montipora aequituberculata.

A bacterial strain, designated CL-22T, was isolated from an encrusting pore coral, Montipora aequituberculata, collected off the coast of Southern Taiwan. Its taxonomic position was investigated using a polyphasic approach. Cells of strain CL-22T were Gram-stain-negative, aerobic, motile by means of a single polar flagellum, rod-shaped and formed yellow colonies. Optimal growth occurred at 30 °C, pH 6.5-7 and in 2 % (w/v) NaCl. A neighbour-joining phylogenetic tree, based on 16S rRNA gene sequences, showed that strain CL-22T fell into the clade comprising the type strains of species of the genus Thalassotalea. Strain CL-22T exhibited 16S rRNA gene sequence similarity values of 94.7-97.1 % to the type strains of species of the genus Thalassotalea. The major fatty acids (>10 %) of strain CL-22T were summed feature 3 (C16 : 1ω7c and/or C16 : 1ω6c) and C16 : 0. The predominant isoprenoid quinone was Q-8. The major polar lipids were phosphatidylethanolamine and phosphatidylglycerol. The genomic DNA G+C content of strain CL-22T was 41.2 mol%. The differential phenotypic properties, together with the phylogenetic inference, demonstrate that strain CL-22T should be classified as a novel species of the genus Thalassotalea; the name Thalassotalea montiporae sp. nov. is proposed. The type strain is CL-22T (=LMG 24827T=BCRC 17940T).

Testing sea urchin and green sea turtle consumption of the allelopathic macroalga Galaxaura divaricata.

Galaxaura divaricata is a partially calcified macroalga that hampers coral recruitment, growth, and recovery via the excretion of allelopathic secondary metabolites. Herbivorous fishes are not major consumers of Galaxaura spp. and there is a need to understand feeding preferences for Galaxaura divaricata in other macroherbivores, like sea urchins and green sea turtles that could act as potential controlling agents. Under certain environmental conditions, G. divaricata can proliferate and overgrow degraded reefs for several years, as documented for several coral patch reefs in the lagoon of Dongsha Atoll, South China Sea. This study aimed to experimentally test the feeding preferences of five species of sea urchin and two individual green sea turtles, Chelonia mydas, for G. divaricata. Specifically, we quantified and compared the consumption rates of the allelopathic G. divaricata with Gracilaria edulis, a nonallelopathic, fleshy red alga, known to be highly favored by herbivores. Results showed that the five urchin species fed on both G. edulis and G. divaricata. However, urchins consumed 2-8 times less wet weight of G. divaricata (range 0.3-3.1 g urchin-1 24 h-1) compared to G. edulis (range 0.6-18 g urchin-1 24 h-1), suggesting that urchin grazing may exert some control on G. divaricata abundance but is likely ineffective for a large-scale removal of the alga. Further, both green sea turtles avoided G. divaricata and selectively fed on G. edulis. More experiments are needed to test the potential role of herbivores in controlling the overgrowth of coral competitive and allelopathic macroalgae, like Galaxaura on coral reefs.

Corallomonas stylophorae gen. nov., sp. nov., a halophilic bacterium isolated from the reef-building coral Stylophora pistillata.

A heterotrophic marine bacterium, designated strain KTSW-6(T), was isolated from the reef-building coral Stylophora pistillata in Kenting, Taiwan. Cells of strain KTSW-6(T) were Gram-stain-negative, facultatively anaerobic, halophilic, non-motile rods surrounded by a thick glycocalyx-like coat and forming creamy white colonies. Growth occurred at 15-37 °C (optimum, 25-30 °C), at pH 7.0-9.0 (optimum, pH 7.5-8.0) and with 0.5-7 % NaCl (optimum, 3-4 %). Polar lipids comprised phosphatidylethanolamine, phosphatidylglycerol, diphosphatidylglycerol, an uncharacterized aminophospholipid and three uncharacterized phospholipids (PL1-PL3). The respiratory quinones of strain KTSW-6(T) were Q-8 (62 %) and Q-7 (38 %). Major cellular fatty acids were summed feature 3 (C16 : 1ω7c and/or C16 : 1ω6c, 29.6 %), C18 : 1ω7c (27.6 %) and C16 : 0 (19.5 %). The major cellular hydroxy fatty acid was C10 : 0 3-OH. The DNA G+C content of strain KTSW-6(T) was 48.6 mol%. 16S rRNA gene sequence analysis indicated that strain KTSW-6(T) belongs to the family Oceanospirillaceae of the order Oceanospirillales, class Gammaproteobacteria. Strain KTSW-6(T) shared 92.7 % 16S rRNA gene sequence similarity with Neptuniibacter caesariensis MED92(T) and 92.0 % with Neptunomonas naphthovorans NAG-2N-126(T). On the basis of the genotypic and phenotypic data, strain KTSW-6(T) represents a novel species of a new genus of the Oceanospirillaceae, for which the name Corallomonas stylophorae gen. nov., sp. nov. is proposed. The type strain of Corallomonas stylophorae is KTSW-6(T) ( = BCRC 80176(T) = LMG 25553(T)).

Baseline dynamics of Symbiodiniaceae genera and photochemical efficiency in corals from reefs with different thermal histories.

Ocean warming and marine heatwaves induced by climate change are impacting coral reefs globally, leading to coral bleaching and mortality. Yet, coral resistance and resilience to warming are not uniform across reef sites and corals can show inter- and intraspecific variability. To understand changes in coral health and to elucidate mechanisms of coral thermal tolerance, baseline data on the dynamics of coral holobiont performance under non-stressed conditions are needed. We monitored the seasonal dynamics of algal symbionts (family Symbiodiniaceae) hosted by corals from a chronically warmed and thermally variable reef compared to a thermally stable reef in southern Taiwan over 15 months. We assessed the genera and photochemical efficiency of Symbiodiniaceae in three coral species: Acropora nana, Pocillopora acuta, and Porites lutea. Both Durusdinium and Cladocopium were present in all coral species at both reef sites across all seasons, but general trends in their detection (based on qPCR cycle) varied between sites and among species. Photochemical efficiency (i.e., maximum quantum yield; Fv/Fm) was relatively similar between reef sites but differed consistently among species; no clear evidence of seasonal trends in Fv/Fm was found. Quantifying natural Symbiodiniaceae dynamics can help facilitate a more comprehensive interpretation of thermal tolerance response as well as plasticity potential of the coral holobiont.

Novel organization of the mitochondrial genome in the deep-sea coral, Madrepora oculata (Hexacorallia, Scleractinia, Oculinidae) and its taxonomic implications.

Madrepora is one of the most ecologically important genera of reef-building scleractinians in the deep sea, occurring from tropical to high-latitude regions. Despite this, the taxonomic affinities and relationships within the genus Madrepora remain unclear. To clarify these issues, we sequenced the mitochondrial (mt) genome of the most widespread Madrepora species, M. oculata, and compared this with data for other scleractinians. The architecture of the M. oculata mt genome was very similar to that of other scleractinians, except for a novel gene rearrangement affecting only cox2 and cox3. This pattern of gene organization was common to four geographically distinct M. oculata individuals as well as the congeneric species M. minutiseptum, but was not shared by other genera that are closely related on the basis of cox1 sequence analysis nor other oculinids, suggesting that it might be unique to Madrepora.

Idiomarina aquimaris sp. nov., isolated from the reef-building coral Isopora palifera.

A bacterial strain designated SW15(T) was isolated from a sample of the reef-building coral Isopora palifera, collected in southern Taiwan. The novel strain was characterized using a polyphasic taxonomic approach. Cells of strain SW15(T) were Gram-negative, aerobic, light yellow, rod-shaped and motile by means of a single polar flagellum. In phylogenetic analyses based on 16S rRNA gene sequences, strain SW15(T) appeared to belong to the genus Idiomarina in the class Gammaproteobacteria and to be most closely related to Idiomarina homiensis PO-M2(T) (97.6% sequence similarity). Strain SW15(T) exhibited optimal growth between 20 and 30 °C, with NaCl between 3% and 4% (w/v) and at a pH value between 7 and 8. Predominant cellular fatty acids were iso-C(15:0) (31.1%), iso-C(17:0) (15.4%), iso-C(17:1)ω9c (10.0%) and C(16:0) (8.8%). The major respiratory quinone was ubiquinone Q-8. The polar lipid profile consisted of a mixture of phosphatidylethanolamine, phosphatidylglycerol, diphosphatidylglycerol, phosphatidylserine, an uncharacterized aminolipid and several uncharacterized phospholipids. The DNA G+C content was 51.1 mol%. The level of DNA-DNA relatedness between strain SW15(T) and Idiomarina homiensis PO-M2(T) was 42.6-56.5%. The results of physiological and biochemical tests allowed the clear phenotypic differentiation of the novel strain from established species of the genus Idiomarina. Based on the genotypic, phenotypic and chemotaxonomic data, strain SW15(T) represents a novel species in the genus Idiomarina, for which the name Idiomarina aquimaris sp. nov. is proposed, with SW15(T) (=LMG 25374(T)=BCRC 80083(T)) as the type strain.

Oceanicaulis stylophorae sp. nov., isolated from the reef-building coral Stylophora pistillata.

A bacterial strain designated GISW-4(T) was isolated from the reef-building coral Stylophora pistillata, collected from seawater off the coast of southern Taiwan, and was characterized in this taxonomic study using a polyphasic approach. Strain GISW-4(T) was Gram-stain-negative, aerobic, beige, rod-shaped, and dimorphic, either non-motile with stalks (or prosthecae), or non-stalked and motile by means of a single polar flagellum. 16S rRNA gene sequence studies showed that the novel strain clustered with Oceanicaulis alexandrii C116-18(T) (98.9 % 16S rRNA gene sequence similarity). Strain GISW-4(T) exhibited optimal growth at 35-40 °C, 1-2 % (w/v) NaCl and at pH 7-9. The predominant cellular fatty acids (>10 %) were C(18 : 0), C(18 : 1)ω7c and C(18 : 1)ω7c 11-methyl. The predominant polar lipids were phosphatidylglycerol, sulfoquinovosyl diacylglycerol and two unknown phospholipids (PL1-2). The major respiratory quinones were ubiquinone Q-10 and Q-9, and the DNA G+C content was 61.6 mol%. The results of physiological and biochemical tests allowed clear phenotypic differentiation of strain GISW-4(T) from the type strain of O. alexandrii. It is evident from the genotypic, phenotypic and chemotaxonomic data that the isolate should be classified as a novel species of the genus Oceanicaulis. The name proposed for this taxon is Oceanicaulis stylophorae sp. nov., with the type strain GISW-4(T) (= LMG 25723(T) = BCRC 80207(T)).

Roseivivax isoporae sp. nov., isolated from a reef-building coral, and emended description of the genus Roseivivax.

A bacterial strain, isolated from a sample of reef-building coral (Isopora palifera) collected off the coast of southern Taiwan, was characterized using a polyphasic taxonomic approach. The strain, designated sw-2(T), was Gram-staining-negative, aerobic, rod-shaped and motile, with subpolar flagella, and formed greyish pink colonies. Phylogenetic analyses based on 16S rRNA gene sequences indicated that strain sw-2(T) was most closely related to Roseivivax halodurans Och 239(T) (97.4 % sequence similarity) and Roseivivax halotolerans Och 210(T) (96.4 %). The novel strain did not require NaCl for growth and exhibited optimal growth at 35-40 °C, at pH 7.5-8.0 and with 3-7 % (w/v) NaCl. It produced bacteriochlorophyll a under aerobic conditions. Summed feature 8 (C(18:1)ω7c and/or C(18:1)ω6c; 63.7 %) predominated in the cellular fatty acid profile. The novel strain's major respiratory quinone was ubiquinone Q-10 and its genomic DNA G+C content was 68.8 mol%. The polar lipid profile consisted of a mixture of phosphatidylglycerol, phosphatidylethanolamine, phosphatidylcholine, diphosphatidylglycerol, phosphatidyldimethylethanolamine, sulfo-quinovosyl diacylglycerol and three uncharacterized phospholipids. The level of DNA-DNA relatedness between strain sw-2(T) and Roseivivax halodurans Och 239(T) was only 15.0 %. The results of physiological and biochemical tests allowed the clear phenotypic differentiation of the novel strain from all established species of the genus Roseivivax. Based on the genotypic, phenotypic and chemotaxonomic data, strain sw-2(T) represents a novel species in the genus Roseivivax, for which the name Roseivivax isoporae sp. nov. is proposed. The type strain is sw-2(T) ( = LMG 25204(T) = BCRC 17966(T)).

Learning from the past is not enough to survive present and future bleaching threshold temperatures.

In the past decade, the frequency of mass coral bleaching events has increased due to seawater temperature anomalies persisting for longer periods. Coral survival from temperature anomalies has been based on how each species in each location responds to stress, which is unique to individual species and may be due to the way stressful experiences accumulate through time in the form of ecological and physiological memory. A deeper understanding of ecological and physiological memory in corals is necessary to understand their survival strategies into the future. Laboratory experiments can help us simulate seawater temperatures experienced by corals in the past and compare their responses to those of the present and future. In this study, we sampled corals with different life history traits from one location perturbed by seawater temperature incursions (variable site) and from a second, relatively undisturbed location (stable site). We sampled across two seasons to observe the responses to bleaching threshold temperatures in the past (1998-29 °C), present (2018-31 °C), and future (2050-33 °C). Corals were healthy at 29 °C and 31 °C, but a fast-growing, temperature-susceptible coral species experienced high mortality at 33 °C compared to a slow-growing, temperature-resistant coral species. Moreover, corals from the variable site and during the spring season fared better under temperature stress. The results of this study provide insight into the possible role of life-history traits on coral's response to seasons and locations in terms of memory to long-term and short-term thermal anomalies and climate change.

Extra high superoxide dismutase in host tissue is associated with improving bleaching resistance in "thermal adapted" and Durusdinium trenchii-associating coral.

Global warming threatens reef-building corals with large-scale bleaching events; therefore, it is important to discover potential adaptive capabilities for increasing their temperature resistance before it is too late. This study presents two coral species (Platygyra verweyi and Isopora palifera) surviving on a reef having regular hot water influxes via a nearby nuclear power plant that exhibited completely different bleaching susceptibilities to thermal stress, even though both species shared several so-called "winner" characteristics (e.g., containing Durusdinium trenchii, thick tissue, etc.). During acute heating treatment, algal density did not decline in P. verweyi corals within three days of being directly transferred from 25 to 31 °C; however, the same treatment caused I. palifera to lose < 70% of its algal symbionts within 24 h. The most distinctive feature between the two coral species was an overwhelmingly higher constitutive superoxide dismutase (ca. 10-fold) and catalase (ca. 3-fold) in P. verweyi over I. palifera. Moreover, P. verweyi also contained significantly higher saturated and lower mono-unsaturated fatty acids, especially a long-chain saturated fatty acid (C22:0), than I. palifera, and was consistently associated with the symbiotic bacteria Endozoicomonas, which was not found in I. palifera. However, antibiotic treatment and inoculation tests did not support Endozoicomonas having a direct contribution to thermal resistance. This study highlights that, besides its association with a thermally tolerable algal symbiont, a high level of constitutive antioxidant enzymes in the coral host is crucial for coral survivorship in the more fluctuating and higher temperature environments.

Population genetics and demography of the coral-killing cyanobacteriosponge, Terpios hoshinota, in the Indo-West Pacific.

The first occurrence of the cyanobacteriosponge Terpios hoshinota was reported from coral reefs in Guam in 1973, but was only formally described in 1993. Since then, the invasive behavior of this encrusting, coral-killing sponge has been observed in many coral reefs in the West Pacific. From 2015, its occurrence has expanded westward to the Indian Ocean. Although many studies have investigated the morphology, ecology, and symbiotic cyanobacteria of this sponge, little is known of its population genetics and demography. In this study, a mitochondrial cytochrome oxidase I (COI) fragment and nuclear ribosomal internal transcribed spacer 2 (ITS2) were sequenced to reveal the genetic variation of T. hoshinota collected from 11 marine ecoregions throughout the Indo-West Pacific. Both of the statistical parsimony networks based on the COI and nuclear ITS2 were dominated by a common haplotype. Pairwise F ST and Isolation-by-distance by Mantel test of ITS2 showed moderate gene flow existed among most populations in the marine ecoregions of West Pacific, Coral Triangle, and Eastern Indian Ocean, but with a restricted gene flow between these regions and Maldives in the Central Indian Ocean. Demographic analyses of most T. hoshinota populations were consistent with the mutation-drift equilibrium, except for the Sulawesi Sea and Maldives, which showed bottlenecks following recent expansion. Our results suggest that while long-range dispersal might explain the capability of T. hoshinota to spread in the IWP, stable population demography might account for the long-term persistence of T. hoshinota outbreaks on local reefs.

Paracoccus stylophorae sp. nov., isolated from the reef-building coral Stylophora pistillata.

A bacterial strain, designated KTW-16(T), was isolated from the reef-building coral Stylophora pistillata, collected from southern Taiwan. Strain KTW-16(T) was a Gram-negative, facultatively anaerobic, pale-yellow, non-motile short rod. Phylogenetic analysis based on 16S rRNA gene sequences showed that strain KTW-16(T) belonged to the genus Paracoccus in the Alphaproteobacteria and exhibited 93.7-96.9 % 16S rRNA gene sequence similarity with type strains of species of the genus Paracoccus (96.9 % with Paracoccus alcaliphilus JCM 7364(T)). Strain KTW-16(T) grew at 15-40 °C (optimum 35 °C), at pH 6.0-10.0 (optimum pH 8.0) and with 0-9 % NaCl (optimum 5 %). The predominant cellular fatty acids were C18:1ω7c, C19:0 cyclo ω8c and C18:0. The major respiratory quinone was Q-10 and the DNA G+C content was 69.1 mol%. The polar lipid profile consisted of phosphatidylglycerol, diphosphatidylglycerol, phosphatidylcholine and several unknown polar lipids. The physiological and biochemical tests allowed clear phenotypic differentiation of the isolate from the type strains of already described Paracoccus species. It is evident from the genotypic, phenotypic and chemotaxonomic analysis that strain KTW-16(T) should be classified in a novel species of the genus Paracoccus, for which the name Paracoccus stylophorae sp. nov. is proposed. The type strain is KTW-16(T) ( = LMG 25392(T)  = BCRC 80106(T)).

Vibrio stylophorae sp. nov., isolated from the reef-building coral Stylophora pistillata.

A bacterial strain designated KTW-12(T) was isolated from a reef-building coral in Kenting, Taiwan, and was characterized using a polyphasic taxonomic approach. Strain KTW-12(T) was Gram-negative, semi-transparent, slightly curved rod-shaped, and non-motile. Growth occurred at 15-35 °C (optimum, 30 °C), at pH 6.0-9.0 (optimum, pH 7.0-8.0), and with 0.5-6.0 % NaCl (optimum, 2 %). The major cellular fatty acids were summed feature 3 (C16:1ω7c and/or C16:1ω6c), C14:0 and C16:0. The DNA G+C content was 47.8 mol%. Phylogenetic analyses based on 16S rRNA gene sequences indicated that strain KTW-12(T) was most closely related to Vibrio porteresiae MSSRF30(T), with 94.8 % gene sequence similarity. Further multilocus sequence analysis using rpoA, recA and pyrH genes also revealed low levels of sequence similarity (74.6-85.0 %) with all species of the genus Vibrio with validly published names. A multigene phylogenetic tree using concatenated sequences of the four genes (16S rRNA, rpoA, recA and pyrH) elucidated that strain KTW-12(T) occupied a distinct phylogenetic position, forming a long branch that was not clustered with any other known species of the genus Vibrio. Strain KTW-12(T) differed from V. porteresiae MSSRF30(T) in the ability to reduce nitrate to nitrite, hydrolysis of chitin, fermentation of sorbitol and production of arginine dihydrolase, valine arylamidase, cystine arylamidase and N-acetyl-ß-glucosaminidase. On the basis of phenotypic, chemotaxonomic and phylogenetic distinctiveness, strain KTW-12(T) should be classified as representing a novel species, for which the name Vibrio stylophorae sp. nov. is proposed. The type strain is KTW-12(T) ( = BCRC 80105(T)  = LMG 25357(T)).

Paracoccus isoporae sp. nov., isolated from the reef-building coral Isopora palifera.

A bacterial strain, designated SW-3(T), was isolated from the reef-building coral Isopora palifera, from Southern Taiwan, and was characterized by using a polyphasic taxonomic approach. Cells of strain SW-3(T) were Gram-reaction-negative, aerobic, rod-shaped and motile by means of monopolar flagella and formed cream-white colonies. Phylogenetic analyses based on 16S rRNA gene sequences showed that strain SW-3(T) belonged to the genus Paracoccus and its most closely related neighbours were P. aestuarii B7(T), P. homiensis DD-R11(T), P. marinus KKL-A5(T), P. denitrificans DSM 413(T) and P. zeaxanthinifaciens R-1512(T), with sequence similarities of 96.8, 96.6, 96.1, 95.8 and 94.9 %, respectively. Strain SW-3(T) exhibited optimal growth at 25-30 °C and pH 9-10 and in 3-5 % (w/v) NaCl. The predominant cellular fatty acid was summed feature 8 (C(18 : 1)ω7c and/or C(18 : 1)ω6c; 75 %). The major respiratory quinone was Q-10. The polar lipid profile consisted of a mixture of diphosphatidylglycerol, phosphatidylglycerol, phosphatidylcholine and several uncharacterized polar lipids. The DNA G+C content of strain SW-3(T) was 63.7 mol%. The results of physiological and biochemical tests allowed clear phenotypic differentiation of this isolate from recognized species of the genus Paracoccus. It is evident from the genotypic, phenotypic and chemotaxonomic data that strain SW-3(T) represents a novel species of the genus Paracoccus, for which the name Paracoccus isoporae sp. nov. is proposed. The type strain is SW-3(T) ( = LMG 25205(T)  = BCRC 17967(T)).

Shimia isoporae sp. nov., isolated from the reef-building coral Isopora palifera.

A bacterial strain, designated SW6(T), was isolated from the reef-building coral Isopora palifera, collected from seawater off the coast of southern Taiwan, and characterized using a polyphasic taxonomic approach. Strain SW6(T) was Gram-negative, aerobic, beige coloured, rod-shaped and motile by monopolar flagella. 16S rRNA gene sequence studies showed that the strain clustered closely with Shimia marina JCM 13038(T) (97.9 % 16S rRNA gene sequence similarity). Strain SW6(T) required NaCl for growth and exhibited optimal growth at 25-30 °C and 3-4 % NaCl. The predominant cellular fatty acid was summed feature 8 (C(18 : 1)ω7c/C(18 : 1)ω6c; 64.1 %). The major respiratory quinone was ubiquinone Q-10 and the DNA G+C content was 54.9 mol%. The results of physiological and biochemical tests allowed clear phenotypic differentiation of this isolate from previously described species of the genus Shimia. It is evident from the genotypic, phenotypic and chemotaxonomic data that the new strain should be classified as a representative of a novel species in the genus Shimia. The name proposed for this taxon is Shimia isoporae sp. nov.; the type strain is SW6(T) ( = LMG 25377(T) = BCRC 80085(T)).

Pseudoteredinibacter isoporae gen. nov., sp. nov., a marine bacterium isolated from the reef-building coral Isopora palifera.

A Gram-negative, heterotrophic, marine bacterium, designated strain SW-11(T), was isolated from the reef-building coral Isopora palifera in Kenting, Taiwan. Cells were rods and were motile by a single polar flagellum. The strain grew at 10-45 °C (optimum, 30-35 °C), at pH 7.0-8.0 (optimum, pH 7.5) and with 2.0-4.0 % NaCl (optimum, 2.5-3.0 %). The polar lipids comprised phosphatidylethanolamine, phosphatidylglycerol, phosphatidylserine, diphosphatidylglycerol and four unknown phospholipids. Isoprenoid quinones consisted of ubiquinone 9 (78.8 %) and ubiquinone 8 (21.1 %). Major cellular fatty acids were summed feature 3 (C(16 : 1)ω7c and/or C(16 : 1)ω6c; 22.3 %), C(17 : 1)ω8c (13.4 %), summed feature 8 (C(18 : 1)ω6c and/or C(18 : 1)ω7c; 13.1 %), C(16 : 0) (10.3 %) and anteiso-C(17 : 1)ω9c (10.0 %). The DNA G+C content was 51.6 mol%. 16S rRNA gene sequence analysis indicated that strain SW-11(T) belongs to the class Gammaproteobacteria and is a member of the order Alteromonadales. Strain SW-11(T) shared 93.2 % 16S rRNA gene sequence similarity with Teredinibacter turnerae T7902(T) and 92.1 % with Saccharophagus degradans 2-40(T), and can be further distinguished from these two related strains by distinct patterns of fatty acid content and differences in the polar lipid profile, the ability to utilize different compounds as carbon sources, the ability to degrade various compounds and differences in enzyme activities. The phylogenetic data and those from physiological, morphological and chemotaxonomic characterizations indicate that strain SW-11(T) represents a novel species and genus, for which the name Pseudoteredinibacter isoporae gen. nov., sp. nov. is proposed. The type strain of Pseudoteredinibacter isoporae is SW-11(T) ( = BCRC 17935(T)  = LMG 25246(T)).