Pedobacter jeongneungensis sp. nov., isolated from forest soil

Strain BH45(T) was isolated from forest soil of Mt. Bukhan in Jeongneung, Seoul, Korea. The Gram-staining-negative strain BH45(T) grows at 4-30°C (optimum of 25-30°C) and between pH 5-8 (optimum of pH 6-8). Its major cellular fatty acids are C(18:3) ω6c (6,9,12) and C(10:0). The G+C content of genomic DNA was 40.2 mol%. The major respiratory quinone system in strain BH45(T) is menaquinone-7. Phylogenetic analysis based on 16S rRNA gene sequences indicates that strain BH45(T) is closely related to the genus Pedobacter. Sequence similarities with P. terrae KCTC 12762(T), P. suwonensis KACC 11317(T), P. soli KACC 14939(T), P. alluvionis DSM 19624(T), P. roseus KCCM 42272(T), P. yonginense KCTC 22721(T) were 97.5, 97.1, 97.0, 97.0, 97.0, and 96.0%, respectively. DNA-DNA hybridization results distinguish strain BH45(T) from two Pedobacter species with high 16S rRNA gene sequence similarities. According to the phenotypic and molecular data, the strain BH45(T) clearly represents a novel species within the genus Pedobacter; thus, the name Pedobacter jeongneungensis sp. nov. is proposed for this strain. The type strain is BH45(T) (=KACC 15514(T) =JCM 17626(T)).