Flaviflexus equikiangi sp. nov. isolated from faeces of Equus kiang (Tibetan wild ass) and carrying a class 1 integron gene cassette in its genome

Two Gram-stain-positive, catalase-negative, non-spore-forming, cocci-shaped strains (dk850 T and JY899) were isolated from the feces of Equus kiang in the Qinghai-Tibet Plateau of China. 16S rRNA gene sequence-based phylogenetic analyses showed that strains dk850 T and JY899 belong to the genus Flaviflexus , closest to F. salsibiostraticola KCTC 33148 T , F. ciconiae KCTC 49253 T and F. huanghaiensis H5 T . The DNA G + C content of strain dk850 T was 62.9%. The digital DNA-DNA hybridization values of strain dk850 T with the closely related species were below the 70% threshold for species demarcation. The two strains grew best at 28°C on brain heart infusion (BHI) agar with 5% sheep blood. All strains had C 18:1 ω 9c and C 16:0 as the major cellular fatty acids. MK-9(H 4 ) was the major menaquinone in strain dk850 T . The major polar lipids included diphosphatidylglycerol and an unidentified phospholipid. Strains dk850 T and JY899 were identified as carrying a class 1 integron containing the aminoglycoside resistance gene aadA11 , both strains were resistant to spectinomycin and streptomycin. Based on several lines of evidence from phenotypic and phylogenetic analyses, strains dk850 T and JY899 represent a novel species of the genus Flaviflexus , for which the name Flaviflexus equikiangi sp. nov. is proposed. The type strain is dk850 T (= CGMCC 1.16593 T = JCM 33598 T ).