A novel predatory bacterium, strain LBG001T, has been isolated from Reynosa, Mexico. The 16S rRNA shares approximately 97 % sequence identity with many reported strains in the genus Bdellovibrio including the type strain Bdellovibrio bacteriovorus HD100T. Phylogenetic trees based on the 16S rRNA gene and on 30 concatenated housekeeping genes or core genes showed that LBG001T is on a separate branch from the B. bacteriovorus group. LBG0001T has a genome size of 3 582 323 bp with a G+C content of 43.1 mol %. The average nucleotide identity, average amino acid identity and digital DNA-DNA hybridization values with other members of the genus Bdellovibrio (<79, <72 and <17 %, respectively) qualifies the strain to represent a new species in the genus. Strain LBG001T formed visible plaques on all 10 tested Gram-negative bacterial species. The phenotypic characteristics, phylogenetic analysis and genomic taxonomic studies support the classification of the strain as representing a new species for which the name Bdellovibrio reynosensis sp. nov. is proposed. The type strain is LBG001T(=ATCC TSD-288T =CM-CNRG 0932T).
Keywords: Bdellovibrio reynosensis; genome comparison; genome sequence; new species; predatory bacteria.