Two strains (VUL4_1 T and VUL4_2) of Gram-staining-positive, catalase-negative, non-spore-forming short rods were isolated from rectal swabs of Old World vultures (Gypaetus barbatus) in the Tibet-Qinghai Plateau, China. Analysis of morphological characteristics and biochemical tests indicated that the two strains closely resembled each other but were distinct from other species of the genus Actinomyces previously described. Based on the results of 16S rRNA gene sequence comparison and genome

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... lysis, strains were determined to be members of the genus Actinomyces, closely related to the type strains of Actinomyces marimammalium (96.4 % 16S rRNA gene sequence similarity), Actinomyces hongkongensis (92.4 %), Actinomyces hordeovulneris (92.3 %) and Actinomycesnasicola (92.2 %), respectively. Optimal growth conditions were 37 C, pH 6-7, with 1 % (w/v) NaCl. Strain VUL4_1 T contained C 18 : 1 !9c and C 16 : 0 as the major cellular fatty acids and diphosphatidylglycerol as the major component of the polar lipids. The genomic DNA G+C content of VUL4_1 T was 54.9 mol%. Strain VUL4_1 T showed less than 70 % DNA-DNA relatedness with other species of the genus Actinomyces, further supporting strain VUL4_1 T as a representative of a novel species. Based on the phenotypic data and phylogenetic inference, a novel species, Actinomyces liubingyangii sp. nov., is proposed with VUL4_1 T (=CGMCC 4.7370 T =DSM 104050 T ) as the type strain.