The taxonomic position of a soil isolate, strain 276(T), was established using a polyphasic approach. The organism showed a range of chemical and morphological properties consistent with its classification in the genus Nocardia. An almost complete 16S rRNA gene sequence determined for the strain was aligned with corresponding sequences of representatives of the genus Nocardia and related taxa using three tree-making algorithms. The organism formed a distinct phyletic line within the evolutionary radiation occupied by the genus Nocardia and was most closely related to the type strain of Nocardia abscessus. However, the two strains shared a low DNA-DNA relatedness value and were readily distinguished using a combination of phenotypic properties. The combined genotypic and phenotypic data show that strain 276(T) should be assigned to the genus Nocardia as a novel species. The name proposed for this new taxon is Nocardia xishanensis sp. nov. The type strain is 276(T) (=CGMCC 4.1860(T)=JCM 12160(T)).
