Intestinimonas butyriciproducens gen. nov., sp nov., a butyrate-producing bacterium from the mouse intestine

A Gram-positive, spore-forming, non-motile, strictly anaerobic rod-shaped bacterium was isolated from the caecal content of a TNFdeltaARE mouse. The isolate, referred to as strain SRB-521-5-I-T, was originally cultured on a reduced agar medium containing yeast extract, rumen fluid and lactic acid as main energy and carbon sources. Phylogenetic analysis of partial 16S rRNA genes revealed that the species most closely related to strain SRB-521-5-1(T) were Flavonifractor plautii and Pseudoflavonifractor capillosus (<95% sequence similarity; 1436 bp). In contrast to F. plautii and P. capillosus, strain SRB-521-5-I-T contained a substantial amount of C-18:0 dimethylacetal. Additional major fatty acids were C-14:0 methyl ester, C-16:0 dimethylacetal and C-18:0 aldehyde. Strain SRB-521-5-I-T differed in its enzyme profile from F. plautii and P. capillosus by being positive for dextrin, maltotriose, turanose, DL-lactic acid and D-lactic acid methyl ester but negative for D-fructose. In reduced Wilkins-Chalgren-Anaerobe broth, strain SRB-521-5-I-T produced approximately 8 mM butyrate and 4 mM acetate. In contrast to F. plautii, the strain did not metabolize flavonoids. It showed intermediate resistance towards the antibiotics ciprofloxacin, colistin and tetracycline. Based on genotypic and phenotypic characteristics, we propose the name Intestinimonas butyriciproducens gen. nov., sp. nov. to accommodate strain SRB-521-5-I-T (=DSM 26588(T)=CCUG 63529(T)) as the type strain.