Muricauda pacifica sp. nov., isolated from seawater of the South Pacific Gyre.

A Gram-stain-negative, strictly aerobic, non-flagellated, non-gliding, oxidase- and catalase-positive, rod-shaped and orange-pigmented bacterium with appendages, designated strain SW027T, was isolated from a surface seawater sample collected from the South Pacific Gyre (26° 29' S 137° 56' W) during the Integrated Ocean Drilling Program (IODP) Expedition 329. Phylogenetic analysis based on 16S rRNA gene sequences indicated that strain SW027T shared the highest sequence similarity with members of the genus Muricauda (94.3-92.7 %), exhibiting 94.3 % sequence similarity to Muricauda flavescens SW-62T. Optimal growth occurred in the presence of 3 % (w/v) NaCl, at pH 7.0 and at 37 °C. The DNA G+C content of strain SW027T was 42.7 mol%. The major fatty acids were iso-C15 : 0, iso-C15 : 1 G and iso-C17 : 0 3-OH. The major respiratory quinone was menaquinone-6. The major polar lipids were phosphatidylethanolamine and two unidentified lipids. Enzymic activity profiles, cell morphology and DNA G+C content differentiated the novel bacterium from the most closely related members of the genus Muricauda. On the basis of the polyphasic analyses, strain SW027T is considered to represent a novel species of the genus Muricauda, for which the name Muricauda pacifica sp. nov. is proposed. The type strain is SW027T ( = JCM 17861T = LMG 26637T).