ALLOCOLEOPSIS (COLEOFASCICULALES, CYANOBACTERIA), A NEW RECORD GENUS OF TERRESTRIAL CYANOBACTERIA IN CHINA

Allocoleopsis is a genus newly established in 2021. In this study, a filamentous cyanobacterial strain was isolated from the soil crust in Wuhan City, Hubei Province, China. A polyphasic approach combining morphological, ecological, and molecular phylogeny were used to delimit the genus Allocoleopsis. Morphologically, the cyanobacterial strain YJ-1, with solitary filaments, sheaths colorless, occasionally containing multiple trichomes. The trichomes were slightly constricted at cross-walls, and the apical cells were rounded to slightly conical, closely resembling the characteristics of Allocoleopsis. The 16S rRNA gene sequence of this strain showed a 99.3% similarity to known species of Allocoleopsis. The phylogenetic analysis based on 16S rRNA gene showed that this strain formed a well-supported evolutionary clade with Allocoleopsis franciscana, with high bootstrap values (100/100/1.00). These results confirm that strain YJ-1 belonged to the type species Allocoleopsis franciscana, and this study marks the first record of the genus Allocoleopsis in China.