Numerical Taxonomy of Actinomadura and Related Actinomycetes

Abstract

One hundred and fifty-six Actinomadura strains, marker strains of related taxa, and related isolates from bagasse and fodder were the subject of numerical phenetic analyses using 90 unit characters. The data were examined using the simple matching (SSM), Jaccard (SJ) and pattern (Dp) coefficients and clustering was achieved using both single and average linkage algorithms. Cluster composition was not markedly affected either by the coefficient or clustering algorithms used or by test error, estimated at 4-5 %. Actinomadura dassonvillei, Actinomadura madurae and Streptomyces somaliensis formed good taxospecies, but the separation of Actinomadura pelletieri strains into two clusters by SJ and SSM analysis requires further study. The single representatives of Actinomadura helvata, Actinomadura pusilla, Actinomadura roseoviolacea, Actinomadura spadix and Actinomadura verrucosospora seemed to form new centres of variation while Actinomadura citrea and Actinomadura malachitica showed much similarity with Actinomadura madurae. Most of the isolates from bagasse and fodder were recovered in two well-defined phena, provisionally labelled clusters 'A' and 'B' which showed little similarity to either Actinomadurn or Nocardia strains, The effect of the different coefficients on the aggregation of clusters is discussed.

Lechevalieria nigeriaca sp. nov., isolated from arid soil

“…Growth at different temperatures (4,10,20,28,30,37,45,50 and 55 u C), at pH 4.0-11.0 (at intervals of 1.0 pH unit), and in the presence of NaCl (0-10 %; w/v) (at intervals of 1.0 pH unit) was determined on ISP 2. Established methods were used to determine whether the strains degraded chitin (Hsu & Lockwood, 1975), RNA (Goodfellow et al 1979) and Tweens 20 and 80 (Nash & Krent, 1991); the remaining degradation tests were examined using methods described by Williams et al (1983). Carbon source utilization was tested using carbon source utilization (ISP 9) medium (Shirling & Gottlieb, 1966) supplemented with a final concentration of 1 % of the tested carbon sources.…”

New Strategies for the Selective Isolation of Industrially Important Bacteria

“…Numerical phenetic surveys of restricted groups of bacteria have resulted in the discovery of many new centres of variation (see Goodfellow and Dickinson, 1985). This approach has, for instance, led to the discovery of new actinoplanetes (Stanton, 1984), mycobacteria (see Goodfellow and Wayne, 1982), nocardiae (Orchard and Goodfellow, 1980;Hookey, 1983), rhodococci (Rowbotham and Cross, 1977a), thermomonosporas (McCarthy and Cross, 1984) and wall chemotype IV taxa lacking mycolic acids (Goodfellow, Alderson and Lacey, 1979).…”

“…In particular, numerical phenetic surveys have provided sound taxonomic frameworks for the genera Mycobacterium (Goodfellow and Wayne, 1982), Nocardia and Streptoverticillium (Locci et al, 1981), have led to the reintroduction of the genus Rhodococcus (Goodfellow and Cross, 1984), and have underscored proposals for the recognition of the genera Actinomadura (Goodfellow, Alderson and Lacey, 1979), Nocardiopsis (Athalye et al, 1985), Oerskovia (Goodfellow, 1971) and Rothia (Holmberg and Hallander, 1973). However, it is the reclassification of the genus Streptomyces which is especially interesting as the definition of species within this taxon has provided taxonomists with a major problem for many years.…”

Actinoplanes abujensis sp. nov., isolated from Nigerian arid soil

“…Decomposition of various compounds was examined using the basal medium recommended by Williams et al (1983). In addition, degradation of RNA (0.5 %, w/v), chitin (0.4 %, w/v) and Tweens 20 and 80 (1 %, w/v) was examined using media and methods described by Goodfellow et al (1979), Hsu & Lockwood (1975) and Nash & Krenz (1991), respectively. Carbon source utilization was tested using carbon source utilization (ISP 9) medium (Shirling & Gottlieb, 1966) supplemented with a final concentration of 1 % of the tested carbon sources and 0.1 % propionic and succinic acids.…”