Yersinia antarctica sp. nov., isolated from an Antarctic insect – expanding the genus into polar ecosystems
Abstract
Five Gram-negative strains, designated BI01 T , BI02, BI1211, BI4D and BI67 isolated from the gut of the Antarctic endemic insect Belgica antarctica , were characterized by a polyphasic approach. Comparative 16S rRNA gene sequences indicated that the bacterial strains belonged to the genus Yersinia . A cgMLST-based phylogeny based on 500 concatenated core genes strongly supported a clade encompassing the 5 strains that was distinct from the currently recognized 27 species of the genus Yersinia . Average nucleotide identity (ANI) among the five strains consistently exceeded 99%, but comparisons to their closest relative, Yersinia intermedia , yielded an ANI of 93% and a digital DNA–DNA hybridization value of 51.74. Metabolic profiling further differentiated the five strains from other closely related species within the genus Yersinia , notably with respect to l -fucose and potassium 2-ketogluconate fermentation, acetoin production and an absence of pyrazinamidase activity. Interestingly, three of the five strains exhibited resistance to β -lactams (amoxicillin and amoxicillin/clavulanate) and first- and second-generation cephalosporins (cefalexin and cefoxitin) associated with the presence of the ampC gene, encoding a class C beta-lactamase, in their genome. None of the five isolates harbour the classic virulence determinants of enteropathogenic Yersinia . The DNA G+C content of the five strains is 47.8 mol%. Based on these results, they represent a novel species of the genus Yersinia , for which the name Yersinia antarctica sp. nov. is proposed. Notably, this represents the first Yersinia species reported from Antarctic terrestrial invertebrates. The type strain is BI01 T (=CIP 112622 T =DSM 121309 T ). The distribution of this species is not limited to Antarctica, as few publicly available genomes indicate its presence in continental Russia and the Russian Arctic, with isolates recovered from rodents, polar bears and birds.
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BibTeX
@article{guern2026yersinia,
title = {{Yersinia antarctica sp. nov., isolated from an Antarctic insect – expanding the genus into polar ecosystems}},
author = {Anne-Sophie Le Guern and Matan Shelomi and Tetiana Bahlai and Laura Guichard and Carine Martins and Javier Pizarro-Cerda and Cyril Savin},
journal = {International Journal of Systematic and Evolutionary Microbiology},
year = {2026},
month = aug,
doi = {10.1099/ijsem.0.007268},
url = {https://pasteur.hal.science/pasteur-05732025v1},
note = {CC BY 4.0},
}
RIS
TY - JOUR
TI - Yersinia antarctica sp. nov., isolated from an Antarctic insect – expanding the genus into polar ecosystems
AU - Anne-Sophie Le Guern
AU - Matan Shelomi
AU - Tetiana Bahlai
AU - Laura Guichard
AU - Carine Martins
AU - Javier Pizarro-Cerda
AU - Cyril Savin
PY - 2026
DA - 2026/08/10
JO - International Journal of Systematic and Evolutionary Microbiology
DO - 10.1099/ijsem.0.007268
UR - https://pasteur.hal.science/pasteur-05732025v1
AB - Five Gram-negative strains, designated BI01 T , BI02, BI1211, BI4D and BI67 isolated from the gut of the Antarctic endemic insect Belgica antarctica , were characterized by a polyphasic approach. Comparative 16S rRNA gene sequences indicated that the bacterial strains belonged to the genus Yersinia . A cgMLST-based phylogeny based on 500 concatenated core genes strongly supported a clade encompassing the 5 strains that was distinct from the currently recognized 27 species of the genus Yersinia . Average nucleotide identity (ANI) among the five strains consistently exceeded 99%, but comparisons to their closest relative, Yersinia intermedia , yielded an ANI of 93% and a digital DNA–DNA hybridization value of 51.74. Metabolic profiling further differentiated the five strains from other closely related species within the genus Yersinia , notably with respect to l -fucose and potassium 2-ketogluconate fermentation, acetoin production and an absence of pyrazinamidase activity. Interestingly, three of the five strains exhibited resistance to β -lactams (amoxicillin and amoxicillin/clavulanate) and first- and second-generation cephalosporins (cefalexin and cefoxitin) associated with the presence of the ampC gene, encoding a class C beta-lactamase, in their genome. None of the five isolates harbour the classic virulence determinants of enteropathogenic Yersinia . The DNA G+C content of the five strains is 47.8 mol%. Based on these results, they represent a novel species of the genus Yersinia , for which the name Yersinia antarctica sp. nov. is proposed. Notably, this represents the first Yersinia species reported from Antarctic terrestrial invertebrates. The type strain is BI01 T (=CIP 112622 T =DSM 121309 T ). The distribution of this species is not limited to Antarctica, as few publicly available genomes indicate its presence in continental Russia and the Russian Arctic, with isolates recovered from rodents, polar bears and birds.
SN - 1466-5026
SN - 1466-5034
ER -