Identification ofAcetobacter strains isolated in Thailand based on 16S–23S rRNA gene ITS restriction and 16S rRNA gene sequence analyses

Ninety-seven acetic acid bacteria, which were isolated from fruits, flowers and other material collected in Thailand by an enrichment culture approach, were assigned to the genusAcetobacter by phenotypic and chemotaxonomic characterisations. On the basis of 16S–23S rRNA gene ITS restriction and 16S rRNA gene sequence analyses, the ninety-seven isolates were grouped into three groups and identified at the specific level: 1) group A including fifty-three isolates, which were identified asAcetobacter pasteurianus, 2) group B including forty-two isolates, which were identified asAcetobacter orientalis and 3) group C including two isolates, which were identified asAcetobacter lovaniensis. There was no isolate to be assigned to other 15 species of the genusAcetobacter.