Kordia jejudonensis sp. nov., isolated from the junction between the ocean and a freshwater spring, and emended description of the genus Kordia.

A Gram-staining-negative, aerobic, non-spore-forming, non-flagellated, non-gliding and rod-shaped bacterial strain, SSK3-3(T), was isolated from the zone where the ocean and a freshwater spring meet at Jeju island, South Korea. Strain SSK3-3(T) grew optimally at 30 °C, at pH 7.0-8.0 and in the presence of 2.0% (w/v) NaCl. Phylogenetic trees based on 16S rRNA gene sequences revealed that strain SSK3-3(T) clustered with the type strains of species of the genus Kordia, with which it exhibited 96.5-97.2% 16S rRNA gene sequence similarity. Sequence similarities to the type strains of other recognized species were less than 92.2%. Strain SSK3-3(T) contained MK-6 as the predominant menaquinone and iso-C(15 : 0), iso-C(17 : 0) 3-OH, iso-C(15 : 0) 3-OH and summed feature 3 (C(16 : 1)ω7c and/or C(16 : 1)ω6c) as the major fatty acids. The major polar lipids of strain SSK3-3(T) were phosphatidylethanolamine, one unidentified lipid and one unidentified glycolipid. The DNA G+C content of strain SSK3-3(T) was 34.9 mol% and the mean DNA-DNA relatedness with Kordia periserrulae KACC 14311(T) was 12%. The differential phenotypic properties, together with the phylogenetic and genetic distinctiveness, revealed that strain SSK3-3(T) is separate from other species of the genus Kordia. On the basis of the data presented, strain SSK3-3(T) is considered to represent a novel species of the genus Kordia, for which the name Kordia jejudonensis sp. nov. is proposed. The type strain is SSK3-3(T) ( = KCTC 32426(T) = CECT 8368(T)). An emended description of the genus Kordia is also provided.