Nocardia inohanensis sp. nov., Nocardia yamanashiensis sp. nov. and Nocardia niigatensis sp. nov., isolated from clinical specimens

Abstract
Comparative 16S rDNA studies on six strains of actinomycete isolated from clinical specimens revealed that they belong to the genus Nocardia and are closely related to Nocardia seriolae, Nocardia otitidiscaviarum, Nocardia uniformis, Nocardia pseudobrasiliensis and Nocardia crassostreae. However, the novel organisms consistently formed a clade distinct from that of the five latter species. Determination of DNA–DNA relatedness indicated that these strains could be classified under three novel species. Based on their phenotypic and phylogenetic characters, three novel species of the genus Nocardia are established: Nocardia inohanensis sp. nov. for IFM 0092T (=NBRC 100128T=JCM 11891T=DSM 44667T), Nocardia yamanashiensis sp. nov. for IFM 0265T (=NBRC 100130T=JCM 11893T=DSM 44669T) and Nocardia niigatensis sp. nov. for IFM 0330T (=NBRC 100131T=JCM 11894T=DSM 44670T), IFM 0260, IFM 0636 and IFM 0833.