Puniceibacterium antarcticum gen. nov., sp nov., isolated from seawater

A Gram-reaction-negative, aerobic, non-flagellated, rod-shaped bacterium, designated strain SM1211(T), was isolated from Antarctic seawater. The isolate grew at 4-35 degrees C and with 0-10% (w/v) NaCl. It could produce bacteriochlorophyll a, but did not reduce nitrate to nitrite or hydrolyse DNA. Phylogenetic analysis of 16S rRNA gene sequences revealed that strain SM1211(T) constituted a distinct phylogenetic line within the family Rhodobacteraceae and was closely related to species in the genera Litorimicrobium, Leisingera, Seohaeicola and Phaeobacter with 95.1-96.0% similarities. The predominant cellular fatty acid was C-18:1 omega 7c. The major polar lipids were phosphatidylethanolamine, phosphatidylglycerol, phosphatidylcholine, an unidentified aminolipid and two unidentified phospholipids. The genomic DNA G+C content of strain SM1211(T) was 60.7 mol%. Based on the phylogenetic, chemotaxonomic and phenotypic data obtained in this study, strain SM1211(T) is considered to represent a novel species in a new genus within the family Rhodobacteraceae, for which the name Puniceibacterium antarcticum gen. nov., sp. nov. is proposed. The type strain of Puniceibacterium antarcticum is SM1211(T) (=CCTCC AB 2013147(T)= KACC 16875(T)).