Tetrachloroethylene (PCE)-degrading bacterium, strain T was characterized by its morphological, physiological and chemical properties. Strain T was an anaerobic, non-sporing, gram negative curved rod, 2.5-5.0μm in length and 0.6-0.8μm in width, with peritrichous flagella. The GC content of DNA was 44 mol %. The cell was a sulfate-reducing bacterium, because it grew in a Modified ISA medium which was used for detecting sulfate-reducing bacteria and produced H2S. C-type cytochrome was detected from the cell extract of strain T, but was not desulfoviridin. The major cellular fatty acids of strain T were C16 : 1, C17 : 1, C16 : 0 and C14 : 0. Strain T grew with formate, lactate, pyruvate, butyrate and malate as electron donors but not with H2. It is considered that strain T is a new sulfate-reducing bacterium because of its biological and chemical characteristics.
