A novel extremely halophilic archaeon was isolated from Lake Tebenquiche, situated in the northern part of the Atacama Saltern, Chile. The cells of these micro-organisms were mostly irregularly disc-shaped. They grew in medium containing saturated concentrations of NaCl and did not require magnesium for optimal growth. The polar lipid composition revealed the presence of mannosyl-2-sulfate-(1-4)-glycosyl-archaeol, the main glycolipid of the genus Halorubrum, and two new glycolipids. The GMC content of the DNA was 63 2 mol %. Phylogenetic analysis of the 16S rRNA gene placed strain ALT6-92 T within the Halorubrum cluster. The low DNA-DNA hybridization value justified classification in a new species for which the name Halorubrum tebenquichense sp. nov. is proposed. The type strain is ALT6-92 T (l CECT 5317 T l DSM 14210 T ).
A number of expeditions to the area of Mar de Atacarna, Chile, 68" 15'W, 20" 30'S, have involved studies of the biological and chemical features of Lake Tebenquiche, situated in the interior of the salar. Chemically, Tebenquiche is hypersaline, with practically anoxic waters dominated by sodium and chloride ions but with high concentrations of sulphate also. The lake is surrounded and invaded by macrophytes, dominated by Scirpus olmeyi and Juncus, which provide organic material for the formation of bacterial mats. The fauna of limnetic crustaceans is almost exclusively ofArtemia salina. The most important genera of bacteria are: Marinomonas, Halobacterium, Acinetobacter and the sulphur reductors Vibrio and Bacillus. The Cyanobacteria are represented exclusively by Oscillatoria.
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