ABSTRACT
A Gram-stain-positive, motile, endospore-producing, facultative anaerobic bacterial strain, designated ATCC 27380T, was isolated from heat-stressed soil of Cape Canaveral, Florida, USA. Growth was observed at 20-42 °C (optimum, 37 °C), at pH 6.0-10.0 (optimum pH 7.0) and in the presence of 0.5-3â% NaCl (optimum 0.5â%). The cell wall contained meso-diaminopimelic acid as the diagnostic amino acid and the isoprenoid quinone was MK-7. The polar lipids present were phosphatidylglycerol, phosphatidylethanolamine, diphosphatidylglycerol and one unknown phospholipid. The main fatty acids were iso-C15â:â0 and anteiso-C15â:â0. Phylogenetic analysis based on 16S rRNA gene sequencing affiliated strain ATCC 27380T to the genus Paenibacillus, and showed the highest sequence similarity to Paenibacillus rigui JCM 16352T (97.0â%). The other closely related type strains exhibited 16S rRNA gene sequence similarity values below 95.9â%. The draft genome of ATCC 27380T had a size of 4,361,187 bases, with a G+C content of 51.0â%. The average nucleotide identity and in silico DNA-DNA hybridization values between strain ATCC 27380T and P. rigui JCM 16352T were 72.5% and 18.5â%, respectively, which were below the threshold suggested for species differentiation (96% and 70â%, respectively). The average amino acid identity between strain ATCC 27380T and P. rigui JCM 16352T was 68.72â%, which was above the suggested genus level demarcation of 65â%. Based on phenotypic, genotypic and chemotaxonomic data, strain ATCC 27380T represents a novel species in the genus Paenibacillus, for which the name Paenibacillusxerothermodurans sp. nov. (=DSM 520T=NRRL NRS-1629T=ATCC 27380T) is proposed.