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ARS Home » Midwest Area » Peoria, Illinois » National Center for Agricultural Utilization Research » Bioenergy Research » Research » Publications at this Location » Publication #251417

Title: Peptostreptococcus russellii sp. nov., isolated from a swine-manure storage pit

Author
item Whitehead, Terence
item Cotta, Michael
item FALSEN, ENEVOID - University Of Goteborg
item MOORE, EDWARD - University Of Goteborg
item LAWSON, PAUL - University Of Oklahoma

Submitted to: International Journal of Systematic and Evolutionary Microbiology
Publication Type: Peer Reviewed Journal
Publication Acceptance Date: 9/3/2010
Publication Date: 8/1/2011
Citation: Whitehead, T.R., Cotta, M.A., Falsen, E., Moore, E., Lawson, P.A. 2011. Peptostreptococcus russellii sp. nov., isolated from a swine-manure storage pit. International Journal of Systematic and Evolutionary Microbiology. 61(8):1875-1879.

Interpretive Summary: Odor and emissions associated with swine farms are a nuisance and increasingly are the target of regulation. Elucidation of the microbial processes that are responsible for the generation of gaseous emissions could lead to the development of intervention strategies. We have characterized the microbial populations of stored swine manure and discovered a number of previously unidentified bacteria. In the current study, a new organism capable of producing large amounts of ammonia is described. This bacterium was named Peptostreptococcus russellii after James Russell, a former Agricultural Research Service scientist who contributed much to the study of anaerobic microbiology. Identifying the microorganisms present in stored manure and their role in production of specific odors and emissions is one way to gain a better understanding of this process and will help scientists working to solve this problem.

Technical Abstract: A polyphasic taxonomic study was performed on seven strains of an unknown Gram-positive, nonspore-forming, obligately anaerobic coccus-shaped bacterium isolated from a swine-manure storage pit. Comparative 16S rRNA gene sequencing confirmed that all these isolates were highly related to each other and formed a hitherto unknown linage within the clostridial rRNA XI cluster of organisms. Pairwise analysis demonstrated that the novel organism to be most closely related to Peptostreptococcus anaerobius and Peptostreptococcus stomatis with 16S rDNA gene sequence similarity values of 95.5% and 93.0%, respectively. The peptidoglycan type of the cell wall was determined to be A4alpha L-Lys-D-Asp with glucose, xylose, and traces of mannose as the cell wall sugars. Based on biochemical, chemotaxomonic, and phylogenetic evidence, it is proposed that the unknown bacterium be classified as a new species, Peptostreptococcus russellii sp. nov. The type strain is RT-10B**T (=CCUG 58235**T = NRRL B-59380**T).