RESULTS:

Nine strains representing a single anamorphic novel yeast species in dispersed tropical and subtropical habitats were isolated from sugarcane leaf tissue (DMKU-SE24 DMKU-SE45T DMKU-SE129 and DMKU-SE134) and corn leaf tissue (DMKU-CE36) in Thailand phylloplane and rhizoplane of sugarcane in Brazil (IMUFRJ 52018 and IMUFRJ 52019) bromeliad leaf tissue in Brazil (IMUFRJ 51954) and plant leaf in Japan (IPM31-24). These strains showed identical or only 1 nt substitution in the sequences of the D1/D2 region of the LSU rRNA gene and 0–5 nt substitutions in the internal transcribed spacer (ITS) region. Phylogenetic analysis based on the combined sequences of the ITS and the D1/D2 regions showed that the eight of these strains represented a single species in the genus Occultifur that was distinct from related species. Occultifur kilbournensis was the most closely related species but with 0.9–1.2 % nucleotide substitutions in the D1/D2 region of the LSU rRNA gene and 2.4–2.6 % nucleotide substitutions in the ITS region. They are therefore considered to represent a novel species of the genus Occultifur although the formation of basidia was not observed. The name Occultifur plantarum f.a. sp. nov. is proposed. The type strain is DMKU-SE45T (=CBS 14554T=TBRC 6561T).

A novel siderophore-producing actinomycete designated PL19T was isolated from the Scots-pine needle-like leaves collected from TNAU campus Coimbatore India. The isolate was chemoorganotrophic in nutrition and able to grow at 30 °C and the optimum pH and NaCl facilitated the growth pH 6–11 and 0–8 % (w/v) respectively. The cells are filamentous and the mycelia formed are basically of wide and intricately branched substrate mycelium from which aerial mycelia arises later gets differentiated into spores that are warty and arranged spirally. The 16S rRNA gene of strain PL19T was sequenced and was highly similar to the type strains of species of the genus Streptomyces including Streptomyces barkulensis RC1831T (98.8 % pairwise similarity) Streptomyces fenghuangensis GIMN4.003T (98.2 %) Streptomyces nanhaiensis SCSIO 01248T (98.0 %) Streptomyces radiopugnans R97T (97.9 %) Streptomyces atacamensis C60T (97.8 %) and Streptomyces macrosporus NBRC 14749T (97.2 %) all of which were subjected to taxonomical characterization using a polyphasic approach. The strains showed unique carbon utilization patterns and it possesses iso-C16 : 0 anteiso-C15 : 0 and anteiso-C17 : 0 as a major cellular fatty acids. The cell-wall was dominated with ll-type diaminopimelic acid and the menaquinone type was MK-9(H6 H8). These chemotaxonomic evidences placed strain PL19T within the genus Streptomyces . The determination of G+C ratio (69.5 mol%) and DNA–DNA hybridization values (13.4–31.8 % with the phylogenetically related species) helped in further hierarchical classification of strain PL19T. Based on morphological physiological and chemotaxonomic data as well as DNA–DNA hybridization values strain PL19T could be distinguished from the evolutionarily closest species currently available. All these collective data show that strain PL19T represents a novel species of the genus Streptomyces for which the name Streptomyces pini sp. nov. is proposed. The type strain is PL19T (=NRRL B-24728T=ICMP 17783T).

A novel basidiomycete yeast species represented by strain NYNU 2211328 was isolated from a leaf of Akebia trifoliata collected from the Baotianman Nature Reserve in Henan Province central China. Phylogenetic analysis of the D1/D2 domain of the large subunit rRNA gene and the internal transcribed spacer (ITS) region suggested that this strain is closely related to Naohidea sebacea CBS 8477 exhibiting the similarity values of 96.5% and 91.3% in the D1/D2 domain and the ITS region respectively. Physiologically the novel strain differs from N. sebacea in its ability to assimilate inulin trehalose and d-arabinose its inability to assimilate dl-lactate and its incapability of growth at 30 °C. Both phenotypic and phylogenetic analyses indicated that the isolated strain represents a novel species in the genus Naohidea and the name Naohidea akebiae fa. sp. nov. (holotype: CICC 33584; MycoBank number: MB 855585) is proposed.

Two yeast strains NYNU 224191 and NYNU 22411 were isolated from plant leaves of Cyclobalanopsis jenseniana and Schisandra sp. harvested from Qingyuan Mountain Quanzhou City Fujian Province southeast China. Molecular phylogenetic analyses demonstrated that these two strains represent a novel species in the genus Meira. They are more closely related to M. marina M. nashicola M. plantarum and M. pileae than other Meira species based on phylogenetic analysis of the internal transcribed spacer (ITS) region and the D1/D2 domain of the large subunit (LSU) rRNA gene. The novel species differed from its closest relatives M. marina M. nashicola M. plantarum and M. pileae by 1.8–2% sequence divergence (11–12 substitutions and 1–2 gaps) in the D1/D2 domain and over 6.7% sequence divergence (40–60 substitutions and 53–77 gaps) in the ITS region respectively. We propose the name Meira qingyuanensis sp. nov. (Holotype CICC 33567; Mycobank MB 855328) for the new species which differs phenotypically from M. marina M. plantarum and M. pileae in its ability to assimilate methyl-α-d-glucoside and the inability to assimilate salicin and from M. nashicola in its ability to assimilate nitrate and nitrite and grow at 30 °C.