Wickerhamiella bidentis sp. nov., a novel yeast species isolated from flowers and insects in Japan

Two strains were isolated from flowers and insects in Japan, namely NBRC 115686T and NBRC 115687, respectively. Based on sequence analysis of the D1/D2 domain of the 26S large subunit (LSU) rRNA gene and the internal transcribed spacer (ITS) region and physiological characteristics, these strains were found to represent a novel yeast species of the genus Wicker-hamiella. Considering pairwise sequence similarity, NBRC 115686T and NBRC 115687 differ from the type strain of the most closely related species, Wickerhamiella galacta NRRL Y-17645T, by 65-66 nucleotide substitutions with 12 gaps (11.65-11.83 %) in the D1/D2 domain of the LSU rRNA gene. The novel species differ from the closely related Wickerhamiella species in some physiological characteristics. For example, compared with Wickerhamiella galacta JCM 8257T, NBRC 115686T and NBRC 115687 assimilated o-galactose, and could grow at 35 and 37 degrees C. Hence, the name Wickerhamiella bidentis sp. nov. is proposed to accommodate this species in the genus Wickerhamiella. The holotype is NBRC 115686T (ex -type strain JCM 35540=CBS 18008).