Lactobacillus reuteri sp. nov., a New Species of Heterofermentative Lactobacilli

A group of seven strains of heterofermentative lactobacilli including the reference strain of Reuter's Lactobacillus fermentum Biotype II (F275 = DSM 20016) isolated from faeces were found to differ from L. fermentum and the other species of the heterofermentative lactobacilli with respect to several phenotypical and genetical characters. These strains are considered as representative of the new species L. reuteri sp. nov., with DSM 20016 being the type strain.