Halostagnicola larsenii gen. nov., sp nov., an extremely halophilic archaeon from a saline lake in Inner Mongolia, China

Strain XH-48(T) was isolated from the sediment of Lake Xilinhot, a saline lake in Inner Mongolia (China). The organism is pleomorphic, neutrophilic and requires at least 2(.)5 M (15%) NaCl, but not MgCl2, for growth; it exhibits optimal growth at 3-4 M (20%) NaCl. The G+C content of its DNA is 61 mol%. 16S rRNA gene sequence analysis revealed that strain XH-48(T) is a member of the family Halobacteriaceae, but there were low levels of similarity with other members of this family. The highest sequence similarity values (94(.)5 and 93(.)3%) were obtained with the 16S rRNA genes of Natrialba aegyptiaca and Natrialba asiatica, respectively. Polar lipid analyses revealed that strain XH-48(T) contains phosphaticlylglycerol and phosphatidylglyceromethyl phosphate, derived from both C20C20 and C20C25 glycerol diethers, and two unidentified glycolipids. On the basis of the data obtained, the novel isolate cannot be classified within any recognized genus. Strain XH-48(T) should be placed within a novel genus and species within the family Halobacteriaceae, order Halobacteriales, for which the name Halostagnicola larsenii gen. nov., sp. nov. is proposed. The type strain of Halostagnicola larsenii is strain XH-48(T) (= DSM 17691(T) = CGMCC 1.5338(T) = JCM 13463(T) = CECT 7116(T)).