Bifidobacterium moukalabense sp. nov., isolated from the faeces of wild west lowland gorilla (Gorilla gorilla gorilla)

Gram-staining-positive anaerobic rods were isolated from the faeces of a wild lowland gorilla (Gorilla gorilla gorilla) in Moukalaba-Doudou National Park, Gabon, and strain GG01T was taxonomically investigated. Based on phylogenetic analyses and specific phenotypic characteristics, the strain belonged to the genus Bifidobacterium. Phylogenetic analysis of its 16S rRNA gene sequence revealed that strain GG01T formed a single monophyletic cluster and had a distinct line of descent. Based on 16S rRNA gene sequence similarity, the type strains of Bifidobacterium catenulatum JCM 1194T (98.3 %) and Bifidobacterium pseudocatenulatum (98.1 %) JCM 1200T were the most closely related to this novel strain, although it was clear that they belonged to different species. hsp60 sequences also supported these relationships. The DNA G+C content of this novel strain was 60.1 mol%. Bifidobacterium moukalabense sp. nov. (type strain GG01T = JCM 18751T = DSM 27321T) is proposed. © 2014 IUMS.