Sulfitobacter litoralis sp. nov., a marine bacterium isolated from the East Sea, Korea

A Gram-negative, aerobic, halophilic bacterium, designated strain Iso 3(T), was isolated from the East Sea in Korea. Strain Iso 3(T) was motile by means of polar flagella, occasionally formed rosette-like aggregates and contained 18 : 1omega7c as the dominant cellular fatty acid. Strain Iso 3(T) grew at NaCl concentrations of 1-10 % and temperatures of 4-30 degrees C. The optimal growth temperature was 20 degrees C. Analysis of the 16S rRNA gene sequence revealed that this strain is affiliated with a subcluster of the Alphaproteobacteria. However, strain Iso 3(T) generated metabolic energy by sulfide oxidation. The 16S rRNA gene sequence similarity between strain Iso 3(T) and the type strain of the most closely related species, Sulfitobacter pontiacus, was 97.7 %. DNA-DNA relatedness between strain Iso 3(T) and Sulfitobacter pontiacus DSM 10014(T) was 24.1 %. On the basis of phenotypic properties and phylogenetic distinctiveness, strain Iso 3(T) is classified within a novel Sulfitobacter species, for which the name Sulfitobacter litoralis sp. nov. is proposed, with the type strain Iso 3(T) (=KCTC 12521(T)=DSM 17584(T)).