Desulfotomaculum defluvii sp. nov., a sulfate-reducing bacterium isolated from the subsurface environment of a landfill.

A novel sulfate-reducing, strictly anaerobic and endospore-forming bacterium, designated strain A5LFS102(T), was isolated from a subsurface landfill sample. The strain was characterized using a polyphasic approach. Optimal growth was observed at 37 °C and pH 7.5 with sulfate as an electron acceptor. Sulfite and thiosulfate were utilized as electron acceptors. The respiratory isoprenoid quinone was menaquinone MK-7. 16S rRNA gene sequence analysis assigned strain A5LFS102(T) to the genus Desulfotomaculum. Both 16S rRNA and dissimilatory sulfate reductase (dsr) genes were compared with those of representative members of the genus Desulfotomaculum. Phylogenetic analysis based on 16S rRNA gene sequences revealed that strain A5LFS102(T) was closely related to Desulfotomaculum aeronauticum DSM 10349(T) (94.6% sequence similarity). The G+C content of the DNA was 45.4 mol%. The total cellular fatty acid profile was dominated by C16 fatty acids. These phenotypic and genotypic data showed that strain A5LFS102(T) should be recognized as representative of a novel species of the genus Desulfotomaculum, for which the name Desulfotomaculum defluvii sp. nov. is proposed. The type strain is A5LFS102(T) (=DSM 23699(T)=JCM 14036(T)=MTCC 7767(T)).