Algoriphagus kandeliae sp. nov., isolated from mangrove rhizosphere soil

Algoriphagus algorifonticola sp. nov., a marine bacterium isolated from cold spring area of South China Sea

A Gram-stain-negative, aerobic, non-motile, short-rod-shaped bacterium, designated strain hg1T, was isolated from marine sediment within the cold spring area of South China Sea and subjected to a polyphasic taxonomic investigation. Colonies were circular and 1.0–2.0 mm in diameter, coral in colour, convex and smooth after growth on marine agar at 28 °C for 3 days. Strain hg1T was found to grow at 4–40 °C (optimum, 35–37 °C), at pH 6.5–9.0 (optimum, pH 7.5) and with 0–8 % (w/v) NaCl (optimum, 1.5–2 %). Chemotaxonomic analysis showed the sole respiratory quinone was MK-7, and the principal fatty acids are iso-C15 : 0, summed feature 3 (C16 : 1 ω7c and/or C16 : 1 ω6c), and iso-C16 : 0. The major polar lipids are phosphatidylethanolamine, an unidentified phospholipid and five unidentified glycolipids. The DNA G+C content of strain hg1T was 39.6 mol% based on the genome sequence. The comparison of 16S rRNA gene sequence similarities showed that hg1T was closely related to Algoriphagus ornithinivorans DSM 15282T (98.6 % sequence similarity), Algoriphagus zhangzhouensis MCCC 1F01099T (97.9 %) and Algoriphagus vanfongensis DSM 17529T (97.2 %); it exhibited 97.0 % or less sequence similarity to the type strains of other species of the genus Algoriphagus with validly published names. Phylogenetic trees reconstructed with the neighbour-joining, maximum-parsimony and maximum-likelihood methods based on 16S rRNA gene sequences showed that strain hg1T constituted a separate branch with A . ornithinivorans , A. zhangzhouensis , A. vanfongensis in a clade of the genus Algoriphagus . OrthoANI values between strain hg1T and A . ornithinivorans , A. zhangzhouensis and A. vanfongensis were 94.3, 74.1, 73.2 %, respectively, and in silico DNA–DNA hybridization values were 56.2, 18.5 and 18.3 %, respectively. Differential phenotypic properties, together with phylogenetic distinctiveness, demonstrated that strain hg1T is clearly distinct from recognized species of genus Algoriphagus . On the basis of these features, we propose that strain hg1T (=MCCC 1K03570T=KCTC 72111T) represents a novel species of the genus Algoriphagus with the name Algoriphagus algorifonticola sp. nov.

Microbiome Fingerprint as Biomarker for Geographical Origin and Heredity in Crocus sativus: A Feasibility Study

Host–microbiome interactions are specific and not random, making them defining entities for the host. The hypothesis proposed by various researchers earlier, that both plants and animals harbor specific inheritable core microbiome, is being augmented in the present study. Additionally, a case for using microbial fingerprint as a biomarker, not only for plant identification but also as a geographical indicator, has been investigated, taking Crocus sativus, saffron, as a study material. Crocus sativus, a monogenetic herb, on account of its male sterility and vegetative propagation, is reported to lack genome based molecular markers. Cormosphere microbiome (microbiome associated with corm) has been compared across three geographical locations, in two continents, to identify the core and unique microbiome, during the vegetative phase of its growth. Microbiome analysis done at phylum and genus level, using next generation sequencing technology, revealed that cormosphere at three locations harbored common phyla. At genus level, 24 genera were found common to all three geographical locations, indicating them to be part of the core microbiome of saffron. However, there were some bacterial genera unique to Kashmir, Kishtwar, and Morocco that can be used to develop microbial markers/geographical indicators for saffron grown in these regions. This is a preliminary study, indicating that the location specific bacterial community can be used to develop microbial barcodes but needs further augmentation with high coverage data from other saffron growing geographical regions.