A Gram-stain-negative, rod-shaped, obligately aerobic, chemoheterotrophic
bacterium which is motile by means of a
single polar flagellum, designated SAORIC-263T, was isolated
from deep seawater of the Pacific Ocean. Phylogenetic
analyses based on 16S rRNA gene sequences and genomebased
phylogeny revealed that strain SAORIC-263T belonged
to the genus Sulfitobacter and shared 96.1–99.9% 16S rRNA
gene sequence similarities with Sulfitobacter species. Wholegenome
sequencing of strain SAORIC-263T revealed a genome
size of 3.9Mbp and DNA G+C content of 61.3 mol%.
The SAORIC-263T genome shared an average nucleotide identity
and digital DNA-DNA hybridization of 79.1–88.5% and
18.9–35.0%, respectively, with other Sulfitobacter genomes.
The SAORIC-263T genome contained the genes related to
benzoate degradation, which are frequently found in deep-sea
metagenome. The strain contained summed feature 8 (C18:1
ω7c), C18:1 ω7c 11-methyl, and C16:0 as the predominant cellular
fatty acids as well as ubiquinone-10 (Q-10) as the major
respiratory quinone. The major polar lipids of the strain
were phosphatidylethanolamine, phosphatidylglycerol, diphosphatidylglycerol,
phosphatidylcholine, and aminolipid.
On the basis of taxonomic data obtained in this study, it is
suggested that strain SAORIC-263T represents a novel species
of the genus Sulfitobacter, for which the name Sulfitobacter
profundi sp. nov. is proposed. The type strain is SAORIC-263T
(= KACC 21183T = NBRC 113428T).