Bacillus oshimensis sp. nov., a moderately halophilic, non-motile alkaliphile

A halophilic and halotolerant, facultatively alkaliphilic strain, K11^T, was isolated from soil obtained from Oshyamanbe, Oshima, Hokkaido, Japan. The isolate grew at pH 710. It was non-motile, Gram-positive and aerobic. Cells comprised straight rods and produced ellipsoidal spores. The isolate grew in 020 % NaCl, with optimum growth at 7 % NaCl, and hydrolysed casein, gelatin, starch, DNA and Tweens 20, 40, 60 and 80. The major isoprenoid quinone was menaquinone-7, and the cellular fatty acid profile consisted of significant amounts of C₁₅ branched-chain acids, iso C_{15 : 0} and anteiso C_{15 : 0}. Phylogenetic analysis based on 16S rRNA gene sequencing indicated that strain K11^T was a member of group 6 [Nielsen et al., FEMS Microbiol Lett 117 (1994), 6166] (alkaliphiles) of the genus Bacillus. DNADNA hybridization revealed a low relatedness (14 %) of the isolate to its closest phylogenetic neighbour, Bacillus clausii. On the basis of phenotypic and chemotaxonomic characteristics, phylogenetic data and DNADNA relatedness data, it was concluded that K11^T (=JCM 12663^T=NCIMB 14023^T) merits classification as the type strain of a novel species, for which the name Bacillus oshimensis sp. nov. is proposed.