A new species of Treponema, Treponema pectinovorum, which was isolated from supragingival and subgingival samples from patients with periodontitis, is described. This new anaerobic species requires rumen fluid or short-chain volatile fatty acids and a fermentable energy source. Pectin, polygalacturonic acid, glucuronic acid, and galacturonic acid are the only substrates fermented. The main end products of fermentation are acetic and formic acids; traces of pyruvic and lactic acids occasionally are found. The type strain of T. pectinovorum is strain VPI D-36DR-2 (= ATCC 33768). The guanine-plus-cytosine content of the deoxyribonucleic acid of the type strain is 39 mol%.
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