An obligately anaerobic, rod-shaped (0.5-1.062.0-10.0 mm), Gram-stain-positive bacterium, occurring mainly singly or in pairs, and designated BLPYG-8 T , was isolated from faeces of a healthy human volunteer aged 56 years. Cells were non-motile. Oval, terminal spores were formed that swell the cells. The strain was affiliated with the genus Clostridium sensu stricto (Clostridium rRNA cluster I) as revealed by 16S rRNA gene sequence analysis. Strain BLPYG-8 T showed 97.3 to 97.4 % 16S rRNA gene

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... equence similarity with Clostridium sulfidigenes DSM 18982 T , Clostridium subterminale DSM 6970 T and Clostridium thiosulfatireducens DSM 13105 T . DNA-DNA hybridization and phenotypic analysis showed that the strain was distinct from its closest relatives, C. sulfidigenes DSM 18982 T , C. subterminale DSM 6970 T , C. thiosulfatireducens DSM 13105 T with 54.2, 53.9 and 53.3 % DNA-DNA relatedness, respectively. Strain BLPYG-8 T grew in PYG broth at temperatures between 20 and 40 8C (optimum 37 8C). The strain utilized a range of amino acids as well as carbohydrates as a source of carbon and energy. Glucose fermentation resulted in the formation of volatile fatty acids mainly acetic acid, n-butyric acid and organic acids such as succinic and lactic acid. The DNA G+C content of strain BLPYG-8 T was 44.1 mol%. The major fatty acids (.10 %) were C 14 : 0 , iso-C 15 : 0 , C 16 : 1 v7c and C 16 : 0 . Phylogenetic analysis and specific phenotypic characteristics and/or DNA G+C content differentiated the strain from its closest relatives. On the basis of these data, strain BLPYG-8 T represents a novel species of the genus Clostridium, for which the name Clostridium punense sp. nov. is proposed. The type strain is