Ureaplasma ceti sp. nov. isolated from the gastric fluid of a spotted dolphin (Stenella attenuata)

<i>Ureaplasma</i> sp. (OM1^T, OM4 and OM7) novel strains were isolated from the gastric fluid of a spotted dolphin (<i>Stenella attenuata</i>). These strains were phenotypically and genotypically characterized, and compared with known species of the genus <i>Ureaplasma</i>. All isolated strains hydrolysed urea and metabolized arginine, but did not produce acid from glucose. All strains were propagated using pleuropneumonia-like organisms medium supplemented with serum and urea under aerobic and anaerobic atmospheric conditions at 37 °C. Transmission electron microscopy revealed a typical mollicute cellular morphology. Analysis of the 16S rRNA gene sequence indicated that the most closely related, validly named type strain was <i>Ureaplasma gallorale</i> ATCC 43346^T (89.4% similarity). The average nucleotide identity and digital DNA-DNA hybridization values among strain OM1^T and closely related species were lower than the accepted thresholds for describing novel prokaryotic species at the genomic level. Based on the genomic, phenotypic and phylogenetic properties, the strains represent a novel species of the genus <i>Ureaplasma</i>, for which the name <i>Ureaplasma ceti</i> sp. nov. with type strain OM1^T (=DSM 116106^T=JCM 39153^T) is proposed. The genomic G+C content and draft genome sizes of the type strain were 31.7% and 889 711 bp, respectively.