Cauliform bacteria lacking phospholipids from an abyssal hydrothermal vent: proposal of Glycocaulis abyssi gen. nov., sp. nov., belonging to the family Hyphomonadaceae.

Cauliform bacteria are prosthecate bacteria often specialized for oligotrophic environments. A polyphasic approach, comprising 16S rRNA gene sequencing, lipid analysis and salt tolerance characterizations, was used to clarify the taxonomy of one isolate, strain MCS 33(T), obtained from above the hot water plume of a deep-sea hydrothermal vent near Vancouver island, Canada. Cells contained no detectable phospholipids or sulpholipids, but did contain 1,2-di-O-acyl-3-O-α-D-glucopyranosylglycerol, 1,2-di-O-acyl-3-O-α-D-glucopyranuronosylglycerol and the novel lipid 1,2-di-O-acyl-3-[O-α-D-glucopyranuronosyl]glycerol-6'-N-glycine. It is assumed that the various glucoronosyl lipids are replacing, at least partially, the phospholipids in their various tasks in the cell cycle. The G+C content of the genomic DNA of strain MCS 33(T) was 62.8 mol%, and Q10 was the predominant respiratory ubiquinone. The 16S rRNA gene sequence of this chemoheterotrophic, aerobic, moderately halophilic strain showed only a low similarity of 94.4% to that of Oceanicaulis alexandrii C116-18(T), and both strains also differed based on their lipids. Although the novel strain was isolated from seawater sampled near a hydrothermal vent, its optimum temperature for growth was 30 °C. The main cellular fatty acids were C18:1ω7c, C18:0 and the unknown fatty acid ECL 11.798, and the main hydroxy fatty acid was C12:0 3-OH. The strain is proposed to represent a novel species of a new genus, Glycocaulis abyssi gen. nov., sp. nov. The type strain of the type species is MCS 33(T) (=LMG 27140(T)=CCUG 62981(T)).