Abstract
A novel lactic acid bacterium, OKN36(T), was isolated from the bark of Entada phaseoloides on Amami Island in Japan. Strain OKN36(T) is characterized as a Gram-stain-positive, non-motile, catalase-negative, heterofermentative, and rod-shaped bacterium. The strain grew at temperatures ranging from 10 to 37 °C, in a pH range of 4.0-8.0, and in the presence of 0-6.5% (w/v) NaCl. Phylogenetic analysis using the 16S rRNA gene analysis revealed that strain OKN36(T) belongs to the Furfurilactobacillus group. The average nucleotide identity (ANI) and the digital DNA-DNA hybridization (dDDH) values between strain OKN36(T) and type strains of validly published Furfurilactobacillus species were 71.83-73.85% and 19.7-20.6%, respectively. These values are below the cutoff of species differentiation, which is 95-96% for ANI and 70% for dDDH. Based on these data, we propose a novel species, named Furfurilactobacillus entadae sp. nov., with the type strain OKN36(T) (= JCM 37107(T) = DSM 118293(T)).