Limosilactobacillus Zheng & Wittouck & Salvetti & Franz & Harris & Mattarelli & O'Toole & Pot & Vandamme & Walter & Watanabe & Wuyts & Felis & Gänzle & Lebeer 2020, GEN. NOV.

DESCRIPTIONOF LIMOSILACTOBACILLUS GEN. NOV.

Limosilactobacillus (Li.mo.si.lac.to.ba.cil'lus. L. masc. adj. limosus, slimy, referring to the property of most strains in the genus to produce exopolysaccharides from sucrose; N.L. masc. n. Lactobacillus a bacterial genus name; N.L. masc. n. Limosilactobacillus, a slimy lactobacillus.

Gram-positive, rod- or coccoid-shaped, catalase-negative, heterofermentative, and anaerobic or aerotolerant. Growth is observed at 37 °C and, for most species, at 45 °C but not at 15 °C. Strains in the genus have very small genomes ranging from 1.6 Mbp for L. equigenerosi to 2.25 Mbp for L. mucosae; the mol % G+C content as calculated from whole genome shotgun sequences ranges from 38.6.1 to 53.4. In comparison to other heterofermentative lactobacilli, Limosilactobacillus speciesferment a relativelybroad spectrumof carbohydrates, however, several species do not ferment glucose. Acid resistance is typically mediated by expression of urease, glutaminase, glutamate decarboxylase and / or arginine deiminase activities [252]. With the exception of L. fermentum and L. secaliphilus, strains in the genus were isolated from intestinal habitats, or were shown experimentally to have adapted to theintestine of vertebrate animals. Limosilactobacillus reuteri and other strains in the genus produce exopolysaccharides from sucrose to support biofilm formation on non-secretory epithelia in the upper intestinal tract [14, 253]. In their natural habitat, Limosilactobacillus species generally form stable associations with Lactobacillus spp.; the same association is observed in food fermentations with Limosilactobacillus. Limosilactobacillus species., particularly L. reuteri, are produced commercially for use as starter culture and as probiotic culture.

Aphylogenetic tree on the basis of 16S rRNA genes of all species in the genus Limosilactobacillus is provided in Figure S6N.

The type species of the genusis Limosilactobacillus fermentum comb. nov.; Limosilactobacillus was previously referred to as the Lactobacillus reuteri group.