LAUSR

Three actinomycetes strains, designated JBL-5, JBL-14 and JBL-20T, were isolated from bamboo (Sasa borealis) litter in Damyang, Republic of Korea. Morphological, chemotaxonomic and phylogenetic analyses demonstrated that the three strains belong to the genus Streptomyces. Microscopic observation revealed that the three strains produced Spirales spore chains with smooth surfaces. Phylogenetic analysis based on 16S rRNA gene sequence comparisons revealed that these strains showed the highest sequence similarity to Streptomyces gelaticus NRRL B-2928T (97.8 %), Streptomyces pulveraceus LMG 20322T (97.7 %), Streptomyces intermedius NBRC 13049T (97.7 %), Streptomyces althioticus NRRL B-3981T (97.7 %) and Streptomyces matensis NBRC 12889T (97.7 %). The DNA-DNA hybridization values between strains JBL-5, JBL-14 and JBL-20T were 91.2-92.4 %, and the values between the three strains and their close phylogenetic relatives were also below 70 %. The predominant menaquinones were MK-9 (H4) and MK-9 (H6). The cell wall contained ll-diaminopimelic acid and the whole-cell sugars were arabinose and xylose. The major polar lipids were diphosphatidylglycerol, phosphatidylethanolamine, phosphatidylinositolmannoside, two unidentified aminolipids, three unidentified aminophospholipids, one unidentified glycolipid and one unidentified lipid. The major cellular fatty acids were iso-C15 : 0, anteiso-C15 : 0, iso-C14 : 0, C18 : 1ω7c and iso-C16 : 0. The DNA G+C contents were 71.8-72.4 mol%. On the basis of phylogenetic analyses and physiological and biochemical characterization, strains JBL-5, JBL-14 and JBL-20T are considered to represent a novel species of the genus Streptomyces, for which the name Streptomyces fuscigenes sp. nov. is proposed. The type strain is JBL-20T (=KACC 18269T=NBRC 110629T).