Isolation and identification of some osmothermophilic bacteria from the salty soils of Aswan

ABSTRACT

Nineteen bacterial strains were isolated form ten samples representatives of salty soils of Aswan. Most strains exhibited good growth within a relatively wide range of NaCl concentration [0-25%] at a relatively high incubation temperature [45-55C]. Three strains demonstrated strictly halophilic behaviour with no growth in media devoid of NaCl. All strains [except No.16] exhibited the ability to grow in the presence of high concentrations [60%] of sucrose. Plate counts obtained at different incubation temperatures and at different NaCl concentrations were compared with some physico-chemical properties of the representative soil samples. Fourteen strains were identified as members of the genus Bacillus, two strains were belonging to the genus Micrococus and three strains could not be identified [pleomorphic, Gm-ve, Non-spore forming halophiles]. All strains were sensitive to streptomycin although they exhibited different potentialities of enzyme systems