Chitinibacter tainanensis gen. nov., sp nov., a chitin-degrading aerobe from soil in Taiwan

Five strains with strong chitinolytic activity were isolated from a soil sample collected from southern Taiwan. The strains shared more than 92% DNA-DNA similarity, indicating membership of the same genospecies. This close relationship was supported by high similarities in fatty acid composition and biochemical characteristics. A 16S rRNA gene sequence analysis indicated that the isolates were members of the class 'Betaproteobacteria', in which they formed an individual subline, of descent that was distantly related (< 94% similarity) to lineages defined by Formivibrio citricus DSM 6150(T) and lodobacter fluviatilis IDSM 3764 (T). On the basis of the phylogenetic and phenotypic distinctness of these novel chitin-degrading organisms, a new genus, Chitinibacter, is proposed, with Chitinibacter tainanensis (type strain, S1(T) =BCRC 17254 (T) =DSM 15459(T)) as the type species.