The translocation t(10;11)(p13;q14) is a recurring chromosomal abnormality that has been observed in patients with acute lymphoblastic leukemia as well as acute myeloid leukemia. We have recently reported that the monocytic cell line U937 has a t(10;11)(pl3;ql4) translocation. Using a combination of positional cloning and candidate gene approach, we cloned the breakpoint and were able to show that AF1O is fused to a novel gene that we named CALM (Clathrin Assembly Lymphoid Myeloid leukemia gene) located at 11ql4. AFIO, a putative transcription factor, had recently been cloned as one of the fusion partners of MLL. CALM has a very high homology in its N-terminal third to the murine ap-3 gene which is one of the clathrin assembly proteins. The N-terminal region of ap-3 has been shown to bind to clathrin and to have a high-affinity binding site for phosphoinositols. The identification of the CALM/AFIO fusion gene in the widely used U937 cell line will contribute to our understanding of the malignant phenotype of this line.

AFrancisella-like bacterium, designated strain SYSU HZH-2, was isolated from a water sample collected from Haizhu Lake, Guangzhou, China. The bacterium was fastidious, and required an exogenous source of l-cysteine for its growth on artificial media. Cells were Gram-stain-negative, coccobacilli, non-motile and non-spore-forming. The strain shared highest 16S rRNA gene sequence similarities with Cysteiniphilum litorale SYSU D3-2 (94.6 % identity), Fangia hongkongensis UST040201-002 (93.2 %) and Caedibacter taeniospiralis 51 (91.6 %). This strain possessed ubiquinone-8 as the respiratory quinone; diphosphatidylglycerol, phosphatidylcholine, phosphatidylethanolamine and phosphatidylglycerol as the known polar lipids, and anteiso-C15 : 0 and C18 : 0 as the major fatty acids (>10 % of total fatty acids). The dendrograms based on 16S rRNA gene sequence analysis showed that it formed a separate cluster along with Cysteiniphilum litorale SYSU D3-2, Caedibactertaeiniospiralis 51 and Fangia hongkongensis UST040201-002. Based on the 16S rRNA gene sequence identity and differences in other phenotypic characteristics, the strain is considered to represent a novel species of a novel genus, for which the name Fastidiosibacter lacustris gen. nov., sp. nov. is proposed. The type strain of the type species Fastidiosibacter lacustris is SYSU HZH-2 (=NBRC 112274 = CGMCC 1.15950). Additionally, the new taxon along with the genera Caedibacter, Cysteiniphilum and Fangia (family unassigned) were distinctly separated from the related families Francisellaceae, Piscirickettsiaceae and Thiotrichaeae in the phylogenetic trees. Therefore, we proposed a new family Fastidiosibacteraceae fam. nov. within the order Thiotrichales to accommodate these four genera.

Two Haemophilus-like isolates with similar biochemical characteristics, designated strains SZY H1 T and SZY H2, were isolated from human semen specimens. Cells were Gram-negative, non-motile, non-acid-fast, pleomorphic rods or coccobacilli. The major fatty acids (>10 %) were C 16 : 0 , C 14 : 0 , iso-C 16 : 0 and/or C 14 : 0 3-OH and C 16 : 1 ω6c and/or C 16 : 1 ω7c. The polar lipids were determined to be phosphatidylethanolamine, phosphatidylglycerol, an unidentified phospholipid, an unidentified aminophospholipid, two unidentified polar lipids and four unidentified aminolipids. The major polyamine was found to be cadaverine. The near-full-length (1462 nt) 16S rRNA gene sequences analysis showed the two isolates were nearly identical (>99.8 %), and closely matched Haemophilus haemolyticus ATCC 33390 T with 98.9-99.1 % sequence similarities. Phylogenetic analysis based on 16S rRNA gene sequences and concatenation of 30 protein markers also revealed that the isolates clustered together with H. haemolyticus ATCC 33390 T , and formed a distinct lineage well separated from the other members of the genus Haemophilus. Further, the average nucleotide identity values between the two isolates and their related species were below the established cutoff values for species delineation (95 %). Based on these findings, the two isolates are considered to represent a new species of the genus Haemophilus, for which name Haemophilus seminalis sp. nov. is proposed. The type strain is SZY H1 T (=NBRC 113782 T =CGMCC 1.17137 T).

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