Streptomyces phytohabitans sp. nov., a novel endophytic actinomycete isolated from medicinal plant Curcuma phaeocaulis

A novel actinomycete, designated strain KLBMP 4601T, was isolated from the root of the medicinal plant Curcuma phaeocaulis collected from Sichuan Province, south-west China. The strain produced extensively branched substrate and aerial hyphae that carried straight to flexuous spore chains. Chemotaxonomic properties of this strain were consistent with those of members of the genus Streptomyces. The cell wall of strain KLBMP 4601T contained ll-diaminopimelic acid as the characteristic diamino acid. The major menaquinone was MK-9(H4), with minor amounts of MK-9(H6), MK-9(H8) and MK-10(H2). The major fatty acids were C16:0, iso-C16:0, C18:1ω9c and C16:1, iso G. Phylogenetic analysis based on 16S rRNA gene sequences indicated that strain KLBMP 4601T belongs to the genus Streptomyces and is most closely related to Streptomyces armeniacus JCM 3070T (97.9 %), Streptomyces pharmamarensis PM267T (97.6 %) and Streptomyces artemisiae YIM 63135T (97.5 %). The 16S rRNA gene sequence similarity between strain KLBMP 4601T and other members of this genus were lower than 97.5 %. DNA–DNA hybridization studies of strain KLBMP 4601T with the three closest species showed relatedness values of 36.3 ± 4.2 %, 27.3 ± 0.6 %, and 30.9 ± 2.5 %, respectively. On the basis of chemotaxonomic, phenotypic and genotypic characteristics, it is evident that strain KLBMP 4601T represents a novel species of the genus Streptomyces, for which the name Streptomyces phytohabitans sp. nov. is proposed. The type strain is KLBMP 4601T (=KCTC 19892T = NBRC 108772T).