Bradyrhizobium huanghuaihaiense sp. nov., an effective symbiotic bacterium isolated from soybean (Glycine max L.) nodules

In a survey of the biodiversity and biogeography of rhizobia associated with soybean (Glycine max L.) in different sites of the Northern (Huang-Huai-Hai) Plain of China, ten strains were defined as representing a novel genomic species in the genus of Bradyrhizobium . They were distinguished from defined species in restriction fragment length polymorphism (RFLP) analysis of the 16S rRNA gene and the 16S–23S rRNA gene intergenic spacer (IGS). In BOX-PCR, these strains presented two patterns that shared 94 % similarity, demonstrating that they were a homogenous group with limited diversity. In phylogenetic analyses of the 16S rRNA gene, IGS and housekeeping gene sequences, four representative strains formed a distant lineage within the genus Bradyrhizobium , which was consistent with the results of DNA–DNA hybridization. The strains of this novel group formed effective nodules with G. max, Glycine soja and Vigna unguiculata in cross-nodulation tests and harboured symbiotic genes (nodC and nifH) identical to those of reference strains of Bradyrhizobium japonicum , Bradyrhizobium liaoningense and ‘Bradyrhizobium daqingense’ originating from soybean, implying that the novel group may have obtained these symbiotic genes by lateral gene transfer. In analyses of cellular fatty acids and phenotypic features, some differences were found between the novel group and related Bradyrhizobium species, demonstrating that the novel group is distinct phenotypically from other Bradyrhizobium species. Based upon the data obtained, these strains are proposed to represent a novel species, Bradyrhizobium huanghuaihaiense sp. nov., with CCBAU 23303T ( = LMG 26136T  = CGMCC 1.10948T  = HAMBI 3180T) as the type strain. The DNA G+C content of strain CCBAU 23303T is 61.5 mol% (T m).