• Korean Journal of Microbiology
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• v.44 no.4
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• pp.326-332
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• 2008

Various bacteria were isolated from Korean soil samples based on their capability inhibiting the growth of MRSA strains. Among them, strain YK5 with the highest activity was a Gram positive sporulative bacillus with motility. It did not produce indole and no acid was formed from mannitol by the bacterium. The 16S rRNA sequence of the strain showed $95{\sim}98%$ homology with those of Paenibacillus spp.. The bacterial isolate shared the highest homology with that of P. elgii (98%), but was named as Paenibacillus incheonensis YK5 due to differences in physiological properties. Butanol extract of the P. incheonensis YK5 culture grown in SST medium at $37^{\circ}C$ for 96 hr showed a broad antimicrobial activity against Gram-positive (MRSA and Streptococcus pneumoniae) and negative (Pseudomonas aeruginosa, Salmonella spp., Shigella spp., Escherichia coli, Klebsiella pneumoniae) pathogenic bacteria and fungi (Cryptococcus neoformans and Trichophyton). The antimicrobial activity in the crude extract was stable in a broad range of temperature and pH, $20{\sim}100^{\circ}C$ and $3.0{\sim}6.0$, respectively. Therefore, the antimicrobial activity of P. incheonesis YK5 had potential as a novel antibiotics for pathogens including MRSA.