Clostridium vulturis sp. nov., isolated from the intestine of the cinereous vulture (Aegypius monachus)

A Gram-stain positive, strict anaerobe, spore-forming, motile rod-shaped bacterial strain with peritrichous flagella, designated YMB-57^T, was isolated from the intestine of a cinereous vulture (Aegypius monachus) in Korea. StrainYMB-57^T was found to show optimal growth at 37 °C, pH 7.5 and 1.0 % (w/v) NaCl. Phylogenetic analysis based on the 16S rRNA gene sequence showed that strain YMB-57^T belongs to the genus Clostridium and is most closely related to the type strains of Clostridium subterminale (96.9 % sequence similarity), Clostridium thiosulfatireducens (96.7 %) and Clostridium sulfidigenes (96.6 %). The main fermentation end-products identified following growth in PYG medium were acetate, butyrate, ethanol, propanol, carbon dioxide and hydrogen. Peptone was converted to ethanol, and butanol, whereas glucose was fermented to ethanol. The major cellular fatty acids were identified as C_16:0, C_18:1 ω9c, and C_18:1 ω9c DMA and the DNA G+C content was determined to be 34.0 mol%. Phenotypic and phylogenetic differences indicate that strain YMB-57^T is distinct from other Clostridium species. It is proposed that strain YMB-57^T be classified as the type strain of a novel species of the genus Clostridium, with the name Clostridium vulturis sp. nov. The type strain is YMB-57^T (=KCTC 15114^T = JCM 17998^T).