Muricauda olearia sp nov., isolated from crude-oil-contaminated seawater, and emended description of the genus Muricauda

A Gram-staining-negative, rod-shaped and non-motile bacterium, designated CL-SS4(T), was isolated from crude-oil-contaminated seawater from the west coast of Korea and was investigated by means of a polyphasic taxonomic approach. Strain CL-SS4(T) grew optimally at 25-30 degrees C, at pH 6.8-7.7 and in the presence of 2-3% sea salts. The major fatty acids were iso-C-17 (:) (0) 3-OH, iso-C-15 (:) (0) and iso-C-15 : 1 G. The major isoprenoid quinone was MK-6. The DNA G + C content was 50.7 mol%. Analysis of the 16S rRNA gene sequence of strain CL-SS4(T) revealed that it was a member of the genus Muricauda, sharing 95.7-96.9 % sequence similarity with the type strains of Muricauda species and being most closely related to Muricauda aquimarina SW-63(T) Phylogenetic analyses based on 16S rRNA gene sequences confirmed that strain CL-SS4(T) formed a deep lineage related to the genus Muricauda. Strain CL-SS4(T) was distinguishable from recognized Muricauda species on the basis of differential phenotypic characteristics and DNA G + C content. Based on these results, it is proposed that strain CL-SS4(T) represents a novel species of the genus Muricauda, for which the name Muricauda olearia sp. nov. is proposed. An emended description of the genus Muricauda is also proposed. The type strain is CL-SS4(T) (=KCCM 90075(T) = JCM 15563(T)).