Pseudomonas pachastrellae sp. nov., isolated from a marine sponge.

Two Gram-negative, non-fermentative, non-denitrifying, non-pigmented, rod-shaped bacteria that were motile by means of polar flagella, designated strains KMM 330(T) and KMM 331, were isolated from a deep-sea sponge specimen and subjected to a polyphasic taxonomic study. The new isolates exhibited 16S rRNA gene sequence similarity of 99.9 %, and their mean level of DNA-DNA relatedness was 82 %. Phylogenetic analysis based on their 16S rRNA gene sequences placed the strains within the genus Pseudomonas as an independent deep clade. Strain KMM 330(T) shared highest sequence similarity (96.3 %) with each of Pseudomonas fulva NRIC 0180(T), Pseudomonas parafulva AJ 2129(T) and Pseudomonas luteola IAM 13000(T); sequence similarity to other recognized species of the genus Pseudomonas was below 95.7 %. The marine sponge isolates KMM 330(T) and KMM 331 could be distinguished from the other recognized Pseudomonas species based on a unique combination of their phenotypic characteristics, including growth in 8 or 10 % NaCl, the absence of pigments, the inability to denitrify and lack of carbohydrate utilization. On the basis of phylogenetic analysis, physiological and biochemical characterization, strains KMM 330(T) and KMM 331 should be classified as a novel species of the genus Pseudomonas, for which the name Pseudomonas pachastrellae sp. nov. is proposed. The type strain is KMM 330(T) (=JCM 12285(T)=NRIC 0583(T)=CCUG 46540(T)).