RHODOCOCCUS-CHUBUENSIS TSUKAMURA 1982 IS A LATER SUBJECTIVE SYNONYM OF GORDONA-SPUTI (TSUKAMURA 1978) STACKEBRANDT 1989 COMB-NOV

The genus Gordona was proposed by Tsukamura in 1971 (M. Tsukamura, J. Gen. Microbiol. 68:15-24, 1971) and was revived in 1988 by Stackebrandt et al. (E. Stackebrandt, J. Smida, and M. D. Collins, J. Gen. Appl. Microbiol. 34:341-348, 1988) to accommodate Rhodococcus species containing mycolic acids with 48 to 66 carbon atoms and MK-9(H-2) as the predominant menaquinone type. On the basis of mycolic acid composition as determined by high-performance liquid chromatography, DNA-DNA similarity data (S1 nuclease procedure), and the rRNA gene restriction patterns of the type strains, me propose that Rhodococcus chubuensis Tsukamura 1982 is a subjective synonym of Gordona sputi (Tsukamura 1978) Stackebrandt 1989 comb. nov. We found that R. chubuensis type strain ATCC 33609, and G. sputi type strain ATCC 29627 exhibit identical mycolic acid profiles, 97% DNA relatedness (difference in thermal denaturation midpoints, 1.0 degrees C), and similar ribotypes after PvuII endonuclease digestion. Thus, as defined by the type strains and considering the priority of the name G. sputi, these two species should be regarded as a single species named Gordona sputi; an emended description of this taxon is given.