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Abstract
Lactobacillus bobalius , Lactobacillus kimchii and Lactobacillus paralimentarius belong to the genus Lactobacillus and show close phylogenetic relationships. In a previous study, L. bobalius and L. kimchii were proposed to be reclassified as later heterotypic synonyms of L. paralimentarius using high 16S rRNA gene sequence similarities (≥99.5 %) and DNA–DNA hybridization values (≥82 %). We determined high quality whole genome assemblies of the type strains of L. bobalius and L. kimchii , which were then compared with that of L. paralimentarius . Average nucleotide identity values among three genomes ranged from 91.4 to 92.3 % which are clearly below 95~96 %, the generally recognized cutoff value for bacterial species boundaries. On the basis of comparative genomic evidence, L. bobalius , L. kimchii , and L. paralimentarius should stand as separate species in the genus Lactobacillus . We therefore suggest rejecting the previous proposal to combine these three species into a single species.
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