Lactobacillus apodemi sp nov., a tannase-producing species isolated from wild mouse faeces

A Gram-positive, rod-shaped, non-enclospore-forming bacterium, strain ASB1(T), able to degrade tannin, was isolated from faeces of the Japanese large wood mouse, Apodemus speciosus. Comparative analysis of the 16S rRNA gene sequence revealed that the strain could be assigned as a member of the genus Lactobacillus. The nearest phylogenetic neighbours were determined as Lactobacillus animalis DSM 20602(T) (98-9% 16S rRNA gene sequence similarity) and Lactobacillus murinus ASIF 361 (98(.)9%). Subsequent polyphasic analysis, including automated ribotyping and DNA-DNA hybridization experiments, confirmed that the isolate represents a novel species, for which the name Lactobacillus apodemi sp. nov. is proposed. The DNA G + C content of the novel strain is 38-5 mol%. The cell-wall pepticloglycan is of type A4 alpha L-Lys-D-Asp. The type strain is ASIB 1(T) (= DSM 16634(T)=Clp 108913(T)).