Aurantimonas endophytica sp nov., a novel endophytic bacterium isolated from roots of Anabasis elatior (C. A. Mey.) Schischk

An orange-coloured, aerobic, motile, short-rod-shaped bacterial strain, designated EGI 6500337(T), was isolated from the surface-sterilized root of a halophyte, Anabasis elatior (C. A. Mey.) Schischk, collected from Urumqi, Xinjiang province, north-west China. Growth occurred at 5-35 degrees C (optimum 30 degrees C), at pH 6.0-9.0 (optimum pH 7.0) and in the presence of 0-6% (w/v) NaCl (optimum 0-1 %). Phylogenetic analysis based on 16S rRNA gene sequences indicated that strain EGI 6500337(T) formed a distinct lineage in the cluster that comprised the genera Aurantimonas and Aureimonas in the family Aurantimonadaceae. The 16S rRNA gene sequence of strain EGI 6500337(T) shared highest similarity with those of Aurantimonas coralicida DSM 14790(T) (97.15 %) and Aurantimonas manganoxydans DSM 21871(T) (97.15 %). Strain EGI 6500337(T) contained Q-10 as the dominant isoprenoid quinone. The major cellular fatty acids were C-18 : 1 omega 7c and C-19 : 0 omega 8c cyclo. The polar lipid profile of strain EGI 6500337(T) contained diphosphatidylglycerol, phosphatidylglycerol, phosphatidylcholine and phosphatidylethanolamine as major components, similarly to members of the genus Aurantimonas. The DNA G+C content of strain EGI 6500337(T) was 66.8 mol%. The level of DNA-DNA relatedness between strain EGI 6500337(T) and Aurantimonas coralicida DSM 14790(T) was 24.7 +/- 2.9 %. On the basis of the phylogenetic analysis, chemotaxonomic data and phenotypic characteristics, strain EGI 6500337(T) represents a novel species of the genus Aurantimonas, for which the name Aurantimonas endophytica sp. nov. is proposed. The type strain is EGI 6500337(T) (= KCTC 52296(T) = CPCC 100904(T)).