Name: Nocardiaceae Castellani and Chalmers 1919 (Approved Lists 1980)

Category: Family

Proposed as: fam. nov.

Etymology: No.car.di.a’ce.ae. N.L. fem. n. Nocardia, type genus of the family; L. fem. pl. n. suff. -aceae, ending to denote a family; N.L. fem. pl. n. Nocardiaceae, the Nocardia family

Pronunciation, gender: no-kar-di-A-ke-a͡e, feminine

Type genus: Nocardia Trevisan 1889 (Approved Lists 1980)

Effective publication: Castellani A, Chalmers AJ. Manual of tropical medicine, 3rd ed. Williams, Wood and Co., New York, 1919.

IJSEM list: Skerman VBD, McGowan V, Sneath PHA. Approved lists of bacterial names. Int J Syst Bacteriol 1980; 30:225-420.

Nomenclatural status: validly published under the ICNP

Taxonomic status: correct name

• Synonyms:

  • Name	Kind
    Hoyosellaceae Salam et al. 2020	heterotypic synonym, validly published under the ICNP
    Tomitellaceae Salam et al. 2020	heterotypic synonym, validly published under the ICNP

• Emendations:
  • Rainey et al. 1997 Stackebrandt E, Rainey FA, Ward-Rainey NL. Proposal for a new hierarchic classification system, Actinobacteria classis nov. Int. J. Syst. Bacteriol. 1997; 47:479-491. 🇩🇪 Anonymous. Notification list. Notification that new names and new combinations have appeared in volume 47, part 2 of the IJSB. Int J Syst Bacteriol 1997; 47:917-919.
    Notes:
    • ⊕ Emendation accompanied by the inclusion of 2 genera in the family.
    • 🧍 Complete authorship reads: Rainey, Ward-Rainey and Stackebrandt.
  • Zhi et al. 2009 Zhi XY, Li WJ, Stackebrandt E. An update of the structure and 16S rRNA gene sequence-based definition of higher ranks of the class Actinobacteria, with the proposal of two new suborders and four new families and emended descriptions of the existing higher taxa. Int J Syst Evol Microbiol 2009; 59:589-608. 🇨🇳 Euzeby JP. Notification list. Notification that new names and new combinations have appeared in volume 59, part 3 of the IJSEM. Int J Syst Evol Microbiol 2009; 59:1259-1261.
    Notes:
    • ⊕ Emendation accompanied by the inclusion of 5 genera in the family.
    • 🧍 Zhi et al. 2009 propose that the families Nocardiaceae and Gordoniaceae be combined in an emended family Nocardiaceae.
  • Nouioui et al. 2018 Nouioui I, Carro L, Garcia-Lopez M, Meier-Kolthoff JP, Woyke T, Kyrpides NC, Pukall R, Klenk HP, Goodfellow M, Goker M. Genome-Based Taxonomic Classification of the Phylum Actinobacteria. Front Microbiol 2018; 9:2007. 🇩🇪 Oren A, Garrity GM. List of changes in taxonomic opinion no. 29. Notification of changes in taxonomic opinion previously published outside the IJSEM. Int J Syst Evol Microbiol 2019; 69:13-32.
    Notes:
    • ⊕ Emendation accompanied by the inclusion of 7 genera in the family.
    • ⊖ Emendation accompanied by the removal of 2 genera from the family.

• Notes:
  • 🧕 Boone et al. (2001) assigned this family to the suborder Corynebacteriineae corrig. Stackebrandt et al. 1997. Publication: Garrity GM, Holt JG. The Road Map to the Manual. In: Boone DR, Castenholz RW, Garrity GM (eds), Bergey's Manual of Systematic Bacteriology, second edition, vol. 1 (The Archaea and the deeply branching and phototrophic Bacteria), Springer-Verlag, New York, 2001, p. 119-166. 🇺🇸
  • 🧕 Goodfellow et al. (2012) assigned this family to the order Corynebacteriales Goodfellow and Jones 2015. Publication: Goodfellow M, Jones AL. Order V. Corynebacteriales ord. nov. In: Goodfellow M, Kämpfer P, H.-J. B, Trujillo ME, Suzuki K, Ludwig W, Whitman WB (eds), Bergey's Manual of Systematic Bacteriology vol. 5, 2nd edn., Springer, New York, 2012, p. 235-243. 🇬🇧
  • 🧕 Nouioui et al. (2018) assigned this family to the order Corynebacteriales Goodfellow and Jones 2015. Publication: Nouioui I, Carro L, Garcia-Lopez M, Meier-Kolthoff JP, Woyke T, Kyrpides NC, Pukall R, Klenk HP, Goodfellow M, Goker M. Genome-Based Taxonomic Classification of the Phylum Actinobacteria. Front Microbiol 2018; 9:2007. 🇩🇪
  • 🧕 Stackebrandt et al. (1997) assigned this family to the suborder Corynebacteriineae corrig. Stackebrandt et al. 1997. Publication: Stackebrandt E, Rainey FA, Ward-Rainey NL. Proposal for a new hierarchic classification system, Actinobacteria classis nov. Int. J. Syst. Bacteriol. 1997; 47:479-491. 🇩🇪
  • 🧕 Val-Calvo and Vazquez-Boland (2023) assigned this family to the suborder Mycobacteriineae Val-Calvo and Vázquez-Boland 2024. Publication: Val-Calvo J, Vazquez-Boland JA. Mycobacteriales taxonomy using network analysis-aided, context-uniform phylogenomic approach for non-subjective genus demarcation. mBio 2023; 14:e0220723. 🇬🇧
  • 🧕 Zhi et al. (2009) assigned this family to the suborder Corynebacteriineae corrig. Stackebrandt et al. 1997. Publication: Zhi XY, Li WJ, Stackebrandt E. An update of the structure and 16S rRNA gene sequence-based definition of higher ranks of the class Actinobacteria, with the proposal of two new suborders and four new families and emended descriptions of the existing higher taxa. Int J Syst Evol Microbiol 2009; 59:589-608. 🇨🇳
  • 🧒 Zhi et al. (2009) assigned the genus Gordonia corrig. (ex Tsukamura 1971) Stackebrandt et al. 1989 to this family. Publication: Zhi XY, Li WJ, Stackebrandt E. An update of the structure and 16S rRNA gene sequence-based definition of higher ranks of the class Actinobacteria, with the proposal of two new suborders and four new families and emended descriptions of the existing higher taxa. Int J Syst Evol Microbiol 2009; 59:589-608. 🇨🇳
  • 🧒 Zhi et al. (2009) assigned the genus Williamsia Kämpfer et al. 1999 to this family. Publication: Zhi XY, Li WJ, Stackebrandt E. An update of the structure and 16S rRNA gene sequence-based definition of higher ranks of the class Actinobacteria, with the proposal of two new suborders and four new families and emended descriptions of the existing higher taxa. Int J Syst Evol Microbiol 2009; 59:589-608. 🇨🇳
  • 🚃 The type genus of this family has alternatively been placed in the family Actinomycetaceae Buchanan 1918 (Approved Lists 1980). Publication: Waksman SA. Family Actinomycetaceae Buchanan and family Steptomycetaceae Waksman and Henrici. In: Breed RS, Murray EGD, Smith NR (eds), Bergey's Manual of Determinative Bacteriology, 7th edition, The Williams & Wilkins Co., Baltimore, 1957, p. 744-825.
  • 🚃 The type genus of this family has alternatively been placed in the family Actinomycetaceae Buchanan 1918 (Approved Lists 1980). Publication: Waksman SA, Henrici AT. Family II. Actinomycetaceae Buchanan. In: Breed RS, Murray EGD, Hitchens AP (eds), Bergey's Manual of Determinative Bacteriology, 6th ed., The Williams & Wilkins Co, Baltimore, 1948, p. 892-928.
  • 🙄 This taxon name is occasionally misprinted (or affected by an OCR error) in some sources as: "Nocardraceae"; "Nocaridaceae"; "Nomrdiaceae"; "Socardiaceae".
  • 💁 Taxonomists who have recently focused on this group are the corresponding authors of Val-Calvo et al. (2025), Lee et al. (2025). Editors in search of reviewers are advised to consider additional criteria such as whether a taxon is covered by one of the ICSP subcommittees.
  • 🎰 The BRCs most frequently used for deposits in this group are: DSM: 257; JCM: 212; NBRC: 148; ATCC: 93; CIP: 79; NRRL: 72; IFO: 67; CCUG: 60; VKM: 48; KCTC: 46.

Subdivision:

Number of child taxa with a validly published and correct name: 10
Number of child taxa with a validly published name, including synonyms: 15
Total number of child taxa: 18

• Child taxa:

  • Name	Nomenclatural status	Taxonomic status
    Aldersonia Nouioui et al. 2018	validly published under the ICNP	correct name
    Amycolicicoccus Wang et al. 2010	validly published under the ICNP	synonym
    Antrihabitans Lee et al. 2020	validly published under the ICNP	correct name
    [Discomyces]	preliminary entry that lacks crucial information
    Hoyosella Jurado et al. 2009	validly published under the ICNP	correct name
    Lolliginicoccus Miyanishi et al. 2023	validly published under the ICNP	correct name
    Micropolyspora Lechevalier et al. 1961 (Approved Lists 1980)	validly published under the ICNP	synonym
    Millisia Soddell et al. 2006	validly published under the ICNP	correct name
    Nocardia Trevisan 1889 (Approved Lists 1980)	validly published under the ICNP	correct name
    Prescottella Sangal et al. 2022	validly published under the ICNP	synonym
    "Prescottella" Jones et al. 2013	not validly published	synonym
    "Prescottia" Jones et al. 2013	not validly published	synonym
    Rhodococcoides Val-Calvo and Vázquez-Boland 2024	validly published under the ICNP	synonym
    Rhodococcus Zopf 1891 (Approved Lists 1980)	validly published under the ICNP, conserved name	correct name
    Skermania Chun et al. 1997	validly published under the ICNP	correct name
    Smaragdicoccus Adachi et al. 2007	validly published under the ICNP	correct name
    Spelaeibacter Kim et al. 2022	validly published under the ICNP	synonym
    Tomitella Katayama et al. 2010	validly published under the ICNP	correct name

Parent taxon: Mycobacteriales Janke 1924 (Approved Lists 1980)

Assigned by: Tindall BJ. On the status of the names Corynebacteriales Goodfellow and Jones 2015, Mycobacteriales Janke 1924 (Approved Lists 1980) and Mycobacteriales Cavalier-Smith 2002. Int J Syst Evol Microbiol 2019; 69:3310-3312. 🇩🇪

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Record number: 963