Paenibacillus alkaliterrae sp. nov., isolated from an alkaline soil in Korea.

A Gram-positive, rod-shaped, motile and endospore-forming bacterial strain, KSL-134T, was isolated from an alkaline soil in Korea, and its taxonomic position was investigated by a polyphasic study. Strain KSL-134T grew optimally at pH 7 x 5 and 30 degrees C. Its cell wall peptidoglycan contained meso-diaminopimelic acid. Strain KSL-134T was characterized as having MK-7 as the predominant menaquinone and anteiso-C15 : 0 as the major fatty acid. The DNA G+C content was 49 x 4 mol%. Phylogenetic analyses based on 16S rRNA gene sequences showed that strain KSL-134T formed a distinct lineage within the evolutionary radiation encompassed by the genus Paenibacillus. Similarity levels between the 16S rRNA gene sequence of strain KSL-134T and those of the type strains of recognized Paenibacillus species ranged from 90 x 4 to 96 x 5 %. DNA-DNA relatedness levels and some differential phenotypic properties were enough to distinguish strain KSL-134T from several phylogenetically related Paenibacillus species. On the basis of phenotypic and phylogenetic data, strain KSL-134T (=KCTC 3956T=DSM 17040T) was classified in the genus Paenibacillus as a member of a novel species, for which the name Paenibacillus alkaliterrae sp. nov. is proposed.