Flammeovirga agarivorans sp. nov., an agar-digesting marine bacterium isolated from surface seawater

A Gram-stain-negative, aerobic, gliding, reddish-orange-coloured, rod-shaped strain, designated SR4 T , was isolated from surface seawater sampled at Luhuitou fringing reef (South China Sea). Phylogenetic analyses based on the 16S rRNA gene, phylogenomic analysis of single-copy gene families and whole genome data affiliated it to the genus Flammeovirga . It was most closely related to Flammeovirga yaeyamensis NBRC 100898 T (97.99 % 16S rRNA gene similarity). The genome average nucleotide identity and DNA–DNA relatedness values between strain SR4 T and its reference strains were less than 74.2 and 16.3 %, respectively. Growth occurred at 20–35 °C (optimum, 28 °C), pH 6.0–9.0 (optimum, pH 7.0) and in the presence of 1–6 % (w/v) NaCl (optimum, 2–4 %). The dominant fatty acids were C 16 : 0 , iso-C 15 : 0 and C 20 : 4  ω 6,9,12,15 c . The polar lipid profile of strain SR4 T comprised phosphatidylethanolamine, two glycolipids, two aminophospholipids and three unidentified lipids. The major respiratory quinone was MK-7. The DNA G+C content of strain SR4 T was 34.20 mol%. On the basis of the polyphasic evidence, strain SR4 T is proposed as representing a novel species of the genus Flammeovirga , for which the name Flammeovirga agarivorans sp. nov. is proposed. The type strain is SR4 T (=KCTC 82075 T =MCCC 1A17137 T ).