LAUSR

Two bacterial strains, P0211T and P0213T, were isolated from a sea cucumber culture pond in China. The strains were able to resist high copper levels. These two strains were characterized at the phenotypic, chemotaxonomic, and genomic level. They were completely different colors, but the 16S rRNA genes showed 99.30% similarity. Phylogenetic analysis based on the sequences of the 16S rRNA gene and five housekeeping genes (dnaK, sucC, rpoB, gyrB, and rpoD) supported the inclusion of these strains within the genus Alteromonas, and the two isolated strains formed a group separated from the closest species Alteromonas aestuariivivens KCTC 52655T. Genomic analyses, including average nucleotide identity (ANIb and ANIm), DNA-DNA hybridization (DDH), and the percentage of conserved proteins (POCP), clearly separated strains P0211T and P0213T from the other species within the genus Alteromonas with values below the thresholds for species delineation. The chemotaxonomic features (including fatty acid and polar lipid analysis) of strains P0211T and P0213T also confirmed their differentiation from the related taxa. The results demonstrated that strains P0211T and P0213T represented two novel species in the genus Alteromonas, for which we propose the names Alteromonas flava sp. nov., type strain P0211T (=KCTC 62078T=MCCC 1H00242T), and Alteromonas facilis sp. nov., type strain P0213T (=KCTC 62079T=MCCC 1H00243T).