The identification of the new species Nitratireductor thuwali sp. nov. reveals the untapped diversity of hydrocarbon-degrading culturable bacteria from the arid mangrove sediments of the Red Sea

This approach reveals the vast diversity of taxonomically novel microbial hydrocarbon degraders within a collection of a few hundred isolates. Among these isolates, we characterized a novel species, <i>Nitratireductor thuwali</i> sp. nov., namely, Nit1536^T. It is an aerobic, heterotrophic, Gram-stain-negative bacterium with optimum growth at 37°C, 8 pH and 4% NaCl, whose genome and physiological analysis confirmed the adaptation to extreme and oligotrophic conditions of the Red Sea mangrove sediments. For instance, Nit1536^T metabolizes different carbon substrates, including straight-chain alkanes and organic acids, and synthesizes compatible solutes to survive in salty mangrove sediments. Our results showed that the Red Sea represent a source of yet unknown novel hydrocarbon degraders adapted to extreme marine conditions, and their discovery and characterization deserve further effort to unlock their biotechnological potential.