Fretibacterium fastidiosum gen. nov., sp nov., isolated from the human oral cavity

SGP1(T), a strain belonging to a lineage of the phylum Synergistetes with no previously cultivated representatives was subjected to a comprehensive range of phenotypic and genotypic tests. For good growth the strain was dependent on co-culture with, or extracts from, selected other oral bacteria. Cells of strain SGP1(T) were asaccharolytic and major amounts of acetic acid and moderate amounts of propionic acid were produced as end products of metabolism in peptone-yeast extract-glucose broth supplemented with a filtered cell sonicate of Fusobacterium nucleatum subsp. nucleatum ATCC 25586(T) (25%, v/v). Hydrogen sulphide was produced and gelatin was weakly hydrolysed. The major cellular fatty acids were C-14:0, C-18:0 and C-16:0. The DNA G+C content of strain SGP1(T) was 63 mol%. Phylogenetic analysis of the full-length 16S rRNA gene showed that strain SGP1(T) represented a novel group within the phylum Synergistetes. A novel species in a new genus, Fretibacterium fastidiosum gen. nov., sp. nov., is proposed. The type strain of Fretibacterium fastidiosum is SGP1(T) (=DSM 25557(T)=JCM 16858(T)).