A report of 9 unrecorded radiation resistant bacterial species in Korea

Five bacterial strains, ES10-3-3-1, KKM10-2-2-1, Ant11, JM10-4-1-3, and KMS4-11 assigned to the genus Deinococcus were isolated from soil samples collected from Namyangju-si in Gyeonggi-do, Gangnam-gu and Dongdaemun-gu in Seoul, Korea. In addition, four bacterial strains, KKM10-2-7-2, JM10-2-5, JM10-2-6-2, and KKM10-2-3 assigned to the genus Hymenobacter were isolated from soil samples collected from Gangnam-gu and Dongdaemun-gu in Seoul, in South Korea. The five Deinococcus species were Gram-stain positive, pink-pigmented, and short-rod or coccus shaped. The four Hymenobacter species were Gram-stain negative, red-pigmented, and short-rod shaped. Phylogenetic analysis based on 16S rRNA gene sequences revealed that strains ES10-3-3-1, KKM10-2-2-1, Ant11, JM10-4-1-3, and KMS4-11 were most closely related to Deinococcus citri $NCCP-154^T$ (with 99.8% similarity), Deinococcus grandis DSM $12784^T$ (99.0%), Deinococcus marmoris DSM $12784^T$ (98.8%), Deinococcus claudionis $PO-04-19-125^T$ (98.7%), and Deinococcus radioresistens $8A^T$ (99.8%), respectively. KKM10-2-7-2, JM10-2-5, JM10-2-6-2, and KKM10-2-3 were most closely related to Hymenobacter algoricola $VUG-A23a^T$ (99.1% similarity), Hymenobacter elongatus $VUG-A112^T$ (99.1% similarity), Hymenobacter gelipurpurascens $Txg1^T$ (99.1% similarity), and Hymenobacter psychrotolerans $Tibet-IIU11^T$ (99.3% similarity), respectively. These nine species have never been reported in Korea; thus, five Deinococcus species are reported in the family Deinococcaceae, order Deinococcales, class Deinococci, phylum Deinococcus-Thermus and four Hymenobacter species are reported in the family Cytophagaceae, order Cytophagales, class Cytophagia, phylum Bacteroidetes.