Description of four new species of the genus Kineosporia: Kineosporia succinea sp. nov., Kineosporia rhizophila sp. nov., Kineosporia mikuniensis sp. nov. and Kineosporia rhamnosa sp. nov., isolated from plant samples, and amended description of the genus Kineosporia.

Eleven motile spore-bearing actinomycetes were isolated from various plant samples and were studied to determine their taxonomic positions. The isolates showed colony appearance and morphology similar to those of the 'sporedome actinomycetes' previously described by L. G. Willoughby in 1969. Although the isolates showed variety in composition of isomers of 2,6-diaminopimelic acid in the cell walls and in whole-cell sugar patterns, all of the isolates were classified in the genus Kineosporia Pagani and Parenti 1978 emend. Itoh et al. 1989 on the basis of their morphological and other chemotaxonomic characteristics, i.e., menaquinone, phospholipid and cellular fatty acid compositions. This assignment to the genus was also supported by a phylogenetic analysis using the 16S rRNA gene sequences. By DNA-DNA hybridization experiment, five genospecies were recognized among the isolates, and one of them showed high levels with the type strain of the type species, Kineosporia aurantiaca, which is the sole member of the genus. These genospecies can be distinguished from each other by their cultural, physiological and biochemical characteristics, and the other four genospecies should be placed into four new species for which the names Kineosporia succinea (type strain I-273T = JCM 9957T), Kineosporia rhizophila (type strain I-449T = JCM 9960T), Kineosporia mikuniensis (type strain I-463T = JCM 9961T) and Kineosporia rhamnosa (type strain I-132T = JCM 9954T) are proposed.