Mycobacterium pyrenivorans sp. nov., a novel polycyclic-aromatic-hydrocarbon-degrading species.

The taxonomic position of a polycyclic-aromatic-hydrocarbon-degrading bacterium, strain 17A3(T), isolated from contaminated soil was determined using a combination of phenotypic and genotypic properties. The isolate showed phenotypic properties that were diagnostic for species of the genus Mycobacterium. Comparative 16S rRNA gene sequence analysis assigned 17A3(T) to the 16S rRNA gene subgroup that contains Mycobacterium aurum, Mycobacterium austroafricanum, Mycobacterium vaccae and Mycobacterium vanbaalenii, but it could clearly be distinguished from these species using a combination of physiological, chemotaxonomic markers and internal rRNA gene spacer analyses. The data showed that strain 17A3(T) (=DSM 44605(T)=NRRL B-24244(T)) merits recognition as the type strain of a novel species of the genus Mycobacterium. The name Mycobacterium pyrenivorans sp. nov. is proposed for the species because of its ability to use pyrene as a sole source of carbon and energy.