Marinococcus halotolerans sp. nov., isolated from Qinghai, north-west China

An aerobic bacterium was isolated from saline soil located in Qinghai, north-west China. The bacterium, designated YIM 70157T, was investigated using a polyphasic taxonomic approach. The Gram reaction of the organism was positive. Comparative 16S rRNA gene sequence analysis demonstrated the isolate to be a member of the genus Marinococcus, the closest phylogenetic neighbour of the unknown bacterium being Marinococcus halophilus DSM 20408T with a similarity of 99·4 %. The peptidoglycan type of YIM 70157T was A1γ, with meso-diaminopimelic acid as diagnostic diamino acid. The major fatty acids were ai-C15 : 0, ai-C17 : 0 and i-C16 : 0. The menaquinones were MK-7 and MK-6. The phospholipids were diphosphatidylglycerol and phosphatidylinositol. The G+C content of total DNA was 48·5 mol%. On the basis of phylogenetic and phenotypic evidence and DNA–DNA hybridization data, this isolate should be classified as a novel species of Marinococcus, for which the name Marinococcus halotolerans sp. nov. is proposed. The type strain is YIM 70157T (=DSM 16375T=KCTC 19045T).