Genomic and Phenotypic Characterization of Streptomyces sirii sp. nov., Amicetin-Producing Actinobacteria Isolated from Bamboo Rhizospheric Soil

In our large-scale search for antimicrobial-producing bacteria, we isolated an actinomycete strain from rhizospheric soil of <i>Bambusa vulgaris</i>. The strain designated BP-8 showed noticeable antibacterial activity. BP-8 was subjected to a whole-genome analysis via a polyphasic taxonomy approach, and its antibacterial metabolite was identified by HRLS-MS. The results of the physiological and morphological analyses indicated that BP-8 is an aerobic, neutrophilic, mesophilic organism that is tolerant to 8% NaCl and can use a wide range of carbohydrates. It forms curly sporophores with a warty surface. The results of the phylogenetic and average nucleotide identity analyses and in silico DNA-DNA hybridization calculation indicated that BP-8 represents the type strain of a novel <i>Streptomyces</i> species. A comparative in silico analysis of the genome sequences of BP-8 and its closest related strains revealed the presence of genes encoding chemotaxonomic markers characteristic of <i>Streptomyces</i>. The antibacterial compound was identified as amicetin. Genomic mining also revealed more than 10 biosynthetic gene clusters that have not been described previously and may lead to the discovery of new valuable compounds. On the basis of these results, strain BP-8^T (=VKM Ac-3066^T = CCTCC AA 2024094^T) is proposed as the type strain of the novel species <i>Streptomyces sirii</i> sp. nov.