J. Gen. Appl. Microbiol., 48, 269–279 (2002)

Isolation and taxonomic and phylogenetic studies performed in this decade have revealed that most Gram-positive, aerobic spore-forming bacteria which have halophilic/halotolerant/alkaliphilic and/or alkalitolerant properties compose a considerably large phylogenetic group within rRNA 1 group of Ash et al. (1991) in the phyletic assemblage of bacteria classically defined as the genus Bacillus (Ash et al., 1991; Garabito et al., 1997; Heyndrickx et al., 1999; Lu et al., 2001; Wainø et al., 1999; Zhilina et al., 2001). They have been isolated mostly from saline or hypersaline environments such as saltern, salt lake, soda lake and seawater, and several genera including Halobacillus, Gracilibacillus, Oceanobacillus, Amphibacillus and Paraliobacillus ryukyuensis gen. nov., sp. nov., a new Gram-positive, slightly halophilic, extremely halotolerant, facultative anaerobe isolated from a decomposing marine alga