Symbiobacterium toebii Sp. nov., Commensal Thermophile Isolated from Korean Compost

A thermophilic nonspore-forming rod isolated from hay compost in Korea was subjected to a taxonomic study. The microorganism, designated as $SC-1^T$, was identified as a nitrate-reducing and nonmotile bacterium. Although the strain was negatively Gram-stained, a KOH test showed that the strain $SC-1^T$ belonged to a Gram-positive species. Growth was observed between 45 and $70^{\circ}C$. The optimal growth temperature and pH were $60^{\circ}C$ and pH 7.5, respectively. The G+C content of the genomic DNA was 65 mol% and the major quinone types were MK-6 and MK-7. A phylogenetic analysis based on 16S rDNA sequences revealed that the strain $SC-1^T$ was most closely related to Symbiobacterium thermophilum. However, the level of DNA-DNA relatedness between strain $SC-1^T$ and the type strain for Symbiobacterium thermophilum was approximately 30%. Accordingly, on the basis of the phenotypic traits and molecular systematic data, the strain $SC-1^T$ would appear to represent a new species within the genus Symbiobacterium. The type strain for the new species is named $SC-1^T$ ($=KCTC\;0307BP^T;\;DSM15906^T$).