Acetobacter lambici sp. nov., isolated from fermenting lambic beer

An acetic acid bacterium, strain LMG 27439^T, was isolated from fermenting lambic beer. The cells were Gram-stain-negative, motile rods, catalase-positive and oxidase-negative. Analysis of the 16S rRNA gene sequence revealed the strain was closely related to Acetobacter okinawensis (99.7 % 16S rRNA gene sequence similarity with the type strain of this species), A. ghanensis (99.6 %), A. syzygii (99.6 %), A. fabarum (99.4 %) and A. lovaniensis (99.2 %). DNA–DNA hybridization with the type strains of these species revealed moderate DNA–DNA hybridization values (31–45 %). Strain LMG 27439^T was unable to grow on glycerol or methanol as the sole carbon source, on yeast extract with 10 % ethanol or on glucose-yeast extract medium at 37 °C. It did not produce acid from l-arabinose, d-galactose or d-mannose, nor did it produce 2-keto-d-gluconic acid, 5-keto-d-gluconic acid or 2,5-diketo-d-gluconic acid from d-glucose. It did not grow on ammonium as the sole nitrogen source and ethanol as the sole carbon source. These genotypic and phenotypic data distinguished strain LMG 27439^T from established species of the genus Acetobacter, and therefore we propose this strain represents a novel species of the genus Acetobacter. The name Acetobacter lambici sp. nov. is proposed, with LMG 27439^T ( = DSM 27328^T) as the type strain.