title: Characterization of Porphyrobacter sanguineus sp. nov., an aerobic bacteriochlorophyll-containing bacterium capable of degrading biphenyl and dibenzofuran.
abstract: Three strains of " Agrobacterium sanguineum", an aerobic marine bacterial species described previously, were re-characterized from phylogenetic and taxonomic viewpoints. 16S rDNA sequence comparisons showed that the " A. sanguineum" strains belong to the alpha-4 subgroup of alpha-Proteobacteria, with members of the genera Erythromicrobium and Porphyrobacter as their closest relatives. DNA-DNA hybridization studies indicated that the " A. sanguineum" strains were distinguishable from any previously known species of these genera. Bacteriochlorophyll a, monosaccharide-type glycosphingolipids, 2-OH fatty acids of C14:0, C15:0, C16:0, and C16:1, and ubiquinone-10 were detected in the " A. sanguineum" strains. The G+C of the DNA was 63.8-64.0 mol%. Two of the " A. sanguineum" strains, IAM 12620 (=ATCC 25659) and ATCC 25661, were able to grow with biphenyl and dibenzofuran as sole carbon source in the presence of 0.05% yeast extract. The medium in these cultures turned yellowish-orange at the exponential phase of growth due to the release of soluble chromogenic metabolites. The remaining " A. sanguineum" strain, ATCC 25660, and all test strains of Erythromicrobium and Porphyrobacter neither grew nor produced yellow-orange pigment with biphenyl or dibenzofuran. In PCR experiments, bphA1 gene, coding for the large subunit protein of biphenyl dioxygenase, was detected in " A. sanguineum" IAM 12620 and ATCC 25661. Based on these results, we propose classifying " A. sanguineum" IAM 12620 and ATCC 25661 as a new species of the genus Porphyrobacter with the name Porphyrobacter sanguineus sp. nov.
authors.affiliation: Department of Ecological Engineering, Toyohashi University of Technology, Toyohashi 441-8580, Japan, hiraishi@eco.tut.ac.jp
authors.forename: Akira
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Hiraishi
authors.forename: Yoshitomo
authors.initials: Y
authors.lastname: Yonemitsu
authors.forename: Mayumi
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Matsushita
authors.forename: Yong Kook
authors.initials: YK
authors.lastname: Shin
authors.forename: Hiroshi
authors.initials: H
authors.lastname: Kuraishi
authors.forename: Kazuyoshi
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Kawahara
mesh_terms: D001420:Bacteria, Aerobic; D001429:Bacteriochlorophylls / Q000737:chemistry*; D001572:Benzofurans / Q000378:metabolism*; D001713:Biphenyl Compounds / Q000378:metabolism*; D005227:Fatty Acids / Q000145:classification; D010788:Photosynthesis; D010802:Phylogeny; D020560:Proteobacteria / Q000145:classification / Q000302:isolation & purification* / Q000378:metabolism*; D012336:RNA, Ribosomal, 16S / Q000032:analysis; D013045:Species Specificity
chemical_list: D001429:Bacteriochlorophylls; D001572:Benzofurans; D001713:Biphenyl Compounds; D005227:Fatty Acids; D012336:RNA, Ribosomal, 16S; C010574:biphenyl; C023614:dibenzofuran