ABSTRACT
The genera Elizabethkingia, Chryseobacterium, and Bergeyella are classiŠed in the family Flavobacteriaceae, order Flavobacteriales, class Flavobacteria, phylum Bacteroidetes. The phylum Bacteroidetes [formerly the Cytophaga-Flavobacterium-Bacteroides (CFB) group] belonging to the rRNA superfamily V is recognized as a separate line of descent within the domain Bacteria. The family Flavobacteriaceae in the CFB group consists of about 80 genera including Elizabethkingia, Chryseobacterium, Bergeyella, and Riemerella; and the genera Bergeyella, Chryseobacterium, and Riemerella appear to form a separate branch on the basis of rRNA cistron similarity and phenotypic characteristics.1-3 Members of the BergeyellaChryseobacterium-Riemerella branch are characterized by their lack ³agellation, low G + C content (30-38 mol%), production of menaquinones as the predominant respiratory quinones, possession of large percentages of branched-chain fatty acids, absence of carbohydrate fermentation, and similarity in hydrolytic enzyme patterns.
