Proposal of Sporolactobacillus nakayamae subsp. nakayamae sp. nov., subsp. nov., Sporolactobacillus nakayamae subsp. racemicus subsp. nov., Sporolactobacillus terrae sp. nov., Sporolactobacillus kofuensis sp. nov., and Sporolactobacillus lactosus sp. nov.

Catalase-negative spore-forming lactic acid bacteria were isolated from soil samples and fermentation starters for Asian traditional alcoholic beverages. The isolates were characterized by determining morphological, biochemical, physiological, and chemotaxonomic properties and were found to be members of the genus Sporolactobacillus. Twelve isolates and some authentic strains belonging to this genus were used in DNA base composition and DNA relatedness studies, and the results revealed that the strains tested could be divided into six groups which correlated with the phenotypic characteristics. One of the groups corresponded to the previously described species Sporolactobacillus inulinus. In addition, we propose the following four new species and two new subspecies for the remaining five groups: Sporolactobacillus nakayamae subsp. nakayamae sp. nov., subsp. nov. (type strain, M-114 [= JCM 3514]), Sporolactobacillus nakayamae subsp. racemicus subsp. nov. (type strain, M-17 [= JCM 3417]), Sporolactobacillus terrae sp. nov. (type strain, M-116 [= JCM 3516]), Sporolactobacillus kofuensis sp. nov. (type strain, M-19 [= JCM 3419]), and Sporolactobacillus lactosus sp. nov. (type strain, Xl-1 [= JCM 9690]).