Forty rhizobial strains were isolated from Lotus creticus, L. pusillus and Bituminaria bituminosa endemic to Tunisia, and they belonged to the Mesorhizobium and Ensifer genera based on 16S rDNA sequence phylogeny. According to the concatenated recA and glnII sequence-based phylogeny, four Bituminaria isolates Pb5, Pb12, Pb8 and Pb17 formed a monophyletic group with Mesorhizobium chacoense ICMP14587^T, whereas four other strains Pb1, Pb6, Pb13 and Pb15 formed two separate lineages within the Ensifer genus. Among the L. pusillus strains, Lpus9 and Lpus10 showed a 96% identical nucleotide with Ensifer meliloti CCBAU83493^T; whereas six other strains could belong to previously undescribed Mesorhizobium and Ensifer species. For L. creticus strains, Lcus37, Lcus39 and Lcus44 showed 98% sequence identity with Ensifer aridi JNVU TP6, and Lcus42 shared a 96% identical nucleotide with Ensifer meliloti CCBAU83493^T; whereas another four strains were divergent from all the described Ensifer and Mesorhizobium species. The analysis of the nodC gene-based phylogeny identified four symbiovar groups; Mesorhizobium sp. sv. anthyllidis (Lpus3 and Lpus11 from L. pusillus, Lcus43 from L. creticus), Ensifer medicae sv. meliloti (four strains from L. creticus and two strains from L. pusillus), E. meliloti sv. meliloti (four from L. creticus, four from L. pusillus and four from B. bituminosa). In addition, four B. bituminosa strains (Pb5, Pb8, Pb12, and Pb17) displayed a distinctive nodC sequence distant from those of other symbiovars described to date. According to their symbiotic gene sequences and host range, the B. bituminosa symbionts (Pb5, Pb8, Pb12 and Pb17) would represent a new symbiovar of M. chacoense for which sv. psoraleae is proposed.

四十根瘤菌菌株分离自莲花creticus，L.毛霉和Bituminaria bituminosa特有突尼斯，并且它们属于慢生根瘤菌和Ensifer属基于16S rDNA序列的系统发育。根据连接的rec A和gln II序列的系统发育学，四个烟粉虱分离株Pb5，Pb12，Pb8和Pb17与中生根瘤菌ICMP14587 ^T形成了一个单系群，而其他四个菌株Pb1，Pb6，Pb13和Pb15在其内形成了两个独立的谱系该Ensifer属。在脓杆菌中Lpus9和Lpus10菌株显示了与Ensifer meliloti CCBAU83493 ^T 96％的核苷酸同一性；而其他六个菌株可能属于先前未描述的中生根瘤菌和恩氏菌属。为L. creticus菌株，Lcus37，Lcus39和Lcus44显示98％的序列同一性与Ensifer aridi JNVU TP6和Lcus42共享用96％相同的核苷酸Ensifer根瘤菌CCBAU83493 ^Ť ; 而另外四个菌株与所描述的所有恩斯弗氏菌和中生根菌属菌种不同。点头分析基于C基因的系统发育鉴定了四个共生体组；慢生根瘤菌属。sv。anthyllidis（Lpus3和Lpus11从L.毛霉，Lcus43从L. creticus），Ensifer medicae SV。苜蓿中华根瘤菌（从四种菌株L. creticus和从两种菌株L.蝠），E.根瘤菌SV。苜蓿中华根瘤菌（4从L. creticus，四从L.毛霉和四个从B. bituminosa）。此外，四种B. bituminosa菌株（Pb5，Pb8，Pb12和Pb17）显示出独特的点头。C序列与迄今为止描述的其他共生体序列不同。根据他们的共生基因序列和宿主范围，在B. bituminosa共生体（点Pb5，PB8，PB12和PB17）将表示新symbiovar M. chacoense为哪些SV。提出了补骨脂。