- Volume 21, Issue 1, 1971

The family of phototrophic green sulfur bacteria contains five genera: Chlorobium Nadson 1906, Pelodictyon Lauterborn 1913, Clathrochloris Geitler 1925, Chloropseudomonas Czurda and Maresch 1937, and Prosthecochloris Gorlenko 1970. Of these, Chlorobium is the type genus, and the name of the family is Chlorobiaceae Copeland 1956. The familial name Chlorobacteriaceae Lauterborn 1913 is illegitimate. Furthermore, the applications of the names Chlorobacterium Lauterborn 1916 and C. symbioticum Lauterborn 1916 are uncertain, and the Judicial Commission is requested to place these names in the list of rejected names. The taxonomic situation of the consortium-forming “symbiotic species” of the phototrophic green sulfur bacteria (Chlorochromatium aggregatium, Chlorochromatium glebulum, Pelochromatium roseum, and Cylindrogloea bacterifera) is discussed.

The following new combinations for names of species of phototrophic sulfur bacteria are proposed: (i) Thiocystis gelatinosa (Winogradsky) comb. nov., (ii) Thiodictyon bacillosum (Winogradsky) comb. nov., (iii) Amoebobacter pendens (Molisch) comb. nov., (iv) Pelodictyon luteolum (Schmidle) comb. nov. Each of the two species of Chlorobium Nadson 1906 has an infrasubspecific forma specialis designated: Chlorobium limicola forma specialis thiosulfatophilum and Chlorobium vibrioforme forma specialis thiosulfatophilum. A revised description of each newly named organism is given. Neotype strains are designated.

The phototrophic red sulfur bacteria presently are placed in a family named Thiorhodaceae Molisch. However, this name is illegitimate because it was not based on the name of a genus. Of the genera placed in this family, five have familial names based on them. All of these names were published by Bavendamm in the same paper and, on the basis of page priority, Thiocapsaceae, with type genus Thiocapsa, is the correct name of this family. Nevertheless, the genus Chromatium Perty, which is the type genus of Chromatiaceae Bavendamm, is the best known and most studied genus of the red sulfur bacteria. Consequently, the Judicial Commission of the International Committee on Systematic Bacteriology is asked to conserve the familial name Chromatiaceae Bavendamm over the earlier subjective synonyms Thiocapsaceae Bavendamm, Lamprocystaceae Bavendamm, Thiopediaceae Bavendamm, and Amoebobacteriaceae Bavendamm. The family Chromatiaceae Bavendamm is emended to contain the genera Chromatium Perty, Thiosarcina Winogradsky, Thiocystis Winogradsky, Thiospirillum Winogradsky, Thiocapsa Winogradsky, Lamprocystis Schroeter, Amoebobacter Winogradsky, Thiodictyon Winogradsky, Thiopedia Winogradsky, and Ectothiorhodospira Pelsh.

For the families, suborders, and the order of the phototrophic bacteria, legitimate names based on the names of type genera are proposed to replace the illegitimate names used to date. The family names are: Rhodospirillaceae nom. nov., Chromatiaceae Bavendamm 1924, and Chlorobiaceae Copeland 1956; suborder names are: Rhodospirillineae nom. nov. and Chlorobiineae nom. nov.; the order name is Rhodospirillales nom. nov.

The type or neotype strains of 41 species of phototrophic bacteria are given. Thirteen types, of which four are designated as types by the authors, are cited. Twenty-eight neotype strains, twenty-four of which are designated as neotypes, are also given. Fifteen of the newly designated neotype strains are described and references are given to previously published descriptions of the other nine neotypes.

A comparison of the data now available on the microorganism variously called C27, Aeromonas shigelloides, Pseudomonas shigelloides, Pseudomonas michigani, Plesiomonas shigelloides, and Fergusonia shigelloides suggests that this organism fits best into the generic description of Vibrio and accordingly should be transferred to this genus as Vibrio shigelloides (Bader) comb. nov.

ATCC 10900 is designated as the neotype strain of Moraxella bovis (Hauduroy et al. 1937) Murray 1948. A description of the type strain is given.

Acropetal hyphal budding and production of blastospores characteristic of the genus Pseudonocardia Henssen and designated as Pseudonocardia-type were studied by time-lapse photography. The formation of cross walls in the aerial hyphae of Pseudonocardia thermophila was reexamined. Not all segments of the articulated hyphae are limited by septa. The new species Pseudonocardia spinosa Schäfer is described. The type strain of this species is MB SF-1 (ATCC 25924, CBS 818.70). P. spinosa corresponds with the type species of the genus in the acropetal budding of the hyphae, in the formation of blastospores, in the composition of the cell wall (type IV), and in the occurrence of a yellow pigment; it differs mainly in being mesophilic and in possessing spiny spores.

Seventeen strains of organisms which conform to the original and subsequent descriptions of the organism currently known as Ramibacterium ramosum, and which include Prévot's strain 113-I as well as recent isolates, have been shown to produce heat-resistant spores which are often difficult to detect. For this species we propose the name Clostridium ramosum (Vuillemin) comb. nov. (basonym: Nocardia ramosa Vuillemin) and Prévot's strain 113-I (ATCC 25582, VPI 0427) as the neotype. Recently isolated strains were from stitch abscesses, urinary infections, abdominal fluid, rectal abscesses and drainage, perineal drainage, vagina, feces, and sigmoid colon contents. Prévot-collection strains were from appendicitis, colitis, liver abscesses, and feces. Previously undescribed characteristics of this species are presented.

Classification of the species of the genus Chondromyces Berkeley and Curtis is considered in light of the proposal that the genus be divided into two genera: Stigmatella Berkeley and Curtis (family Cystobacteraceae), with tapered vegetative cells and encapsulated myxospores (microcysts); and Chondromyces (family Polyangiaceae), with cylindrical vegetative cells and similar myxospores. The latter genus, as redefined, would include Chondromyces crocatus (the type species), Chondromyces apiculatus, Chondromyces pediculatus, Chondromyces catenulatus, and Chondromyces lanuginosus. Two species are recognized as belonging to the genus Stigmatella: Stigmatella aurantiaca (the type species) and Stigmatella erecta.

With the transfer of Podangium erectum, the type species of Podangium Jahn, to the genus Stigmatella Berkeley and Curtis as an earlier, subjective synonym of Stigmatella brunnea, it has become necessary to assign the remaining species which were in the genus Podangium to another genus. Included among these species is Podangium boletus (synonym: Melittangium boletus), the type species of the genus Melittangium Jahn. Because none of the other species is the type of a genus, the correct name for the genus which includes the organisms under consideration is Melittangium. In addition to the type species, M. boletus, the genus includes M. lechenicolum (Thaxter) comb. nov. and M. alboraceum (Peterson) comb. nov.

In 1906, Morgan described a new bacterium, referred to merely as “Bacterium No. 1,” which he isolated from the intestines and feces of patients suffering from infantile diarrhoea. The first to name this organism were Winslow et al. (1919), who called it Bacillus morgani (sic). Subsequent authors transferred Morgan's organism to a number of different genera. Among these was Rauss (1936), who stated that Morgan's bacillus belongs to “the Proteus group,” but who did not use or propose a scientific name for the organism. In 1939 Yale described Morgan's “Organism No. 1” under the scientific name “Proteus morganii (Winslow et al.) Rauss.” The questions arise whether the name Proteus morganii was validly published and, if so, by whom? It is clear that Yale was the first to propose the name P. morganii, although he attributed the name to Rauss, apparently because Rauss was the first to suggest placement of Morgan's bacillus in Proteus. Therefore it was Yale, not Rauss, who validly published the name P. morganii, and Yale, not Rauss, should be cited as the author of this name. ATCC 25830 (ATCC 8076h; NCTC 235), described herein, is designated as the neotype strain for P. morganii Yale.

A new genus of the family Enterobacteriaceae is proposed on the basis of its unique biochemical and serological properties. The genus, Levinea (named in honor of Max Levine), is composed of two different species, for which the names Levinea amalonatica and Levinea malonatica are proposed. L. amalonatica is designated as the type species. The type strain of L. amalonatica is 9823 (=ATCC 25405) and the type strain of L. malonatica is 1791 (=ATCC 25408). Information is given which distinguishes the proposed new genus from certain species of Enterobacter and Citrobacter, the genera which it most closely resembles. The similarity of L. amalonatica to organisms in the proposed new genus Padlewskia Macierewicz (9) is discussed.

The characteristics of seven strains identified as Vibrio anguillarum, Vibrio piscium var. japonicus, or Vibrio ichthyodermis are compared with those in the original descriptions of these taxa. A proposal is made to combine all strains as a single species, Vibrio anguillarum Bergman.

The name Lactobacillus casei, although applied for half a century to a well-described, well-known, clearly defined bacterium, has not been validly published, hence it has no standing in nomenclature. However, according to the rules of the International Code of Nomenclature of Bacteria (1966), there are no impediments to L. casei being proposed as a new combination. Therefore, recognizing the principle of stability in nomenclature, the authors propose Lactobacillus casei (Orla-Jensen) comb. nov. as the name of the organism described by von Freudenreich (1889–1890; 1891) under the designation Bacillus α and later named Streptobacterium casei by Orla-Jensen (1919). ATCC 393 (Streptobacterium casei No. 7 of Orla-Jensen) is designated as the neotype strain of Lactobacillus casei.

The name Xanthomonas translucens f. sp. oryzae was originally proposed for the organism that causes leaf blight of rice, but it has recently been used for the leaf streak organism, and confusion has resulted. It is proposed that the leaf streak organism be called Xanthomonas translucens f. sp. oryzicola, a name that is nomenclaturally more acceptable.

Two bacteriological methods, one to demonstrate phosphatase production and the other to demonstrate aesculin hydrolysis, were tested on sterol-requiring Mycoplasma and sterol-nonrequiring Acholeplasma strains to determine their utility in differentiating species. The phosphatase test, which gave weak and variable reactions with most of the sterolnonrequiring strains, was judged ineffectual for differentiating these strains. The aesculin test distinguished all Mycoplasma strains and Acholeplasma granularum, both of which gave negative reactions, from most Acholeplasma laidlawii strains and from Acholeplasma axanthum, which gave positive reactions.

Cultural and biochemical studies showed no significant differences between a bacterium isolated from the nematode Neoaplectana carpocapsae in the Soviet Union and the bacterium, originally described as Achromobacter nematophilus, isolated from the DD-136 strain of N. carpocapsae in the United States. Further characterization of A. nematophilus is presented, but its reallocation to a more suitable genus should await the reorganization of the families Achromobacteraceae and Enterobacteriaceae now in progress.