Name: Moorella thermoautotrophica (Wiegel et al. 1982) Collins et al. 1994

Category: Species

Proposed as: comb. nov.

Basonym: Clostridium thermautotrophicum corrig. Wiegel et al. 1982

Etymology: ther.mo.au.to.tro’phi.ca. Gr. masc. adj. thermos, hot; Gr. masc. pron. autos, self; Gr. masc./fem. adj. trophos, a feeder; N.L. fem. adj. thermoautotrophica, self-feeding in heat, indicating that the organism grows at elevated temperatures and uses CO2 as its principal carbon source for growth [probably better: thermautotrophica]

Pronunciation (Latin), gender: … t^her-mo-a͡u-to-TRO-p^hi-ka, feminine

Type strain: ATCC 33924; DSM 1974; JW 701/3

Conduct genome-based taxonomy at

16S rRNA gene: X77849 Analyse FASTA

Valid publication: Collins MD, Lawson PA, Willems A, Cordoba JJ, Fernandez-Garayzabal J, Garcia P, Cai J, Hippe H, Farrow JA. The phylogeny of the genus Clostridium: proposal of five new genera and eleven new species combinations. Int J Syst Bacteriol 1994; 44:812-826. 🇬🇧

IJSEM list: Anonymous. Notification list. Notification that new names and new combinations have appeared in volume 44, part 4 of the IJSB. Int J Syst Bacteriol 1995; 45:199-200.

Nomenclatural status: validly published under the ICNP, rejected name

Taxonomic status: synonym (and not recommended for medical use)

Correct name: Neomoorella thermoacetica (Fontaine et al. 1942) Gtari and Ventura 2025

Risk group: 1

• Synonyms:

  • Name	Kind
    Neomoorella thermoacetica (Fontaine et al. 1942) Gtari and Ventura 2025	heterotypic synonym, validly published under the ICNP
    Moorella thermoacetica (Fontaine et al. 1942) Collins et al. 1994	heterotypic synonym, validly published under the ICNP, illegitimate name
    Clostridium thermaceticum corrig. Fontaine et al. 1942 (Approved Lists 1980)	heterotypic synonym, validly published under the ICNP, inappropriate correction
    Clostridium thermautotrophicum corrig. Wiegel et al. 1982	homotypic synonym, validly published under the ICNP, rejected name
    Clostridium thermoaceticum Fontaine et al. 1942 (Approved Lists 1980)	heterotypic synonym, validly published under the ICNP
    Clostridium thermoautotrophicum Wiegel et al. 1982	homotypic synonym, inaccurate spelling and rejected

• Notes:
  • ⏲ According to Redl et al. (2020), this species is a later heterotypic synonym of Clostridium thermaceticum corrig. Fontaine et al. 1942 (Approved Lists 1980). Publication: Redl S, Poehlein A, Esser C, Bengelsdorf FR, et al. Genome-Based comparison of all species of the genus Moorella, and status of the species Moorella thermoacetica and Moorella thermoautotrophica. Front Microbiol 2020; 10:3070. 🇩🇪
  • ⏲ According to Redl et al. (2020), this species is a later heterotypic synonym of Moorella thermoacetica (Fontaine et al. 1942) Collins et al. 1994. Publication: Redl S, Poehlein A, Esser C, Bengelsdorf FR, et al. Genome-Based comparison of all species of the genus Moorella, and status of the species Moorella thermoacetica and Moorella thermoautotrophica. Front Microbiol 2020; 10:3070. 🇩🇪
  • ⏲ According to Redl et al. (2020), this species is a later heterotypic synonym of Clostridium thermoaceticum Fontaine et al. 1942 (Approved Lists 1980). Publication: Redl S, Poehlein A, Esser C, Bengelsdorf FR, et al. Genome-Based comparison of all species of the genus Moorella, and status of the species Moorella thermoacetica and Moorella thermoautotrophica. Front Microbiol 2020; 10:3070. 🇩🇪
  • ⏲ According to Redl et al. (2020), this species is a later heterotypic synonym of Neomoorella thermoacetica (Fontaine et al. 1942) Gtari and Ventura 2025. Publication: Redl S, Poehlein A, Esser C, Bengelsdorf FR, et al. Genome-Based comparison of all species of the genus Moorella, and status of the species Moorella thermoacetica and Moorella thermoautotrophica. Front Microbiol 2020; 10:3070. 🇩🇪
  • 🏢 Synonymy of this taxon was mentioned in an IJSEM list. Publication: Oren A, Garrity GM. List of changes in taxonomic opinion no. 32. Notification of changes in taxonomic opinion previously published outside the IJSEM. Int J Syst Evol Microbiol 2020; 70:4061-4090.
  • 😷 The risk group for Germany has been imported on 2023-10-29. The full classification is: risk group = 1. — If in doubt, use the risk group given in the regulations for your country and, if these are not available, use the risk group given in the catalogue of the culture collection from which you have obtained or intend to obtain the strain.
  • 🎓 Name mentioned 17 times in PubMed until 2025-06-04.
  • 🙅 This name is on the List of Recommended Names for bacteria of medical importance (LoRN) as a synonym of the name to be applied to this species. The name is on LoRN because of the recorded risk group of the genus.
  • 🧍 Rejected name (Opinion 115). As the type strain is not available from any established culture collection, nor from the authors who originally described the species, Kimura et al. 2016 propose to place the name on the list of rejected names if no replacement is found within two years (Int J Syst Evol Microbiol 66, 3249 – 3251). Such a deadline is a misinterpretation of the Code, but the epithet of the name was indeed placed on the list of rejected epithets. Publication: Kimura ZI, Hoshino T, Murakami K. The status of the species Moorella thermoautotrophica Wiegel et al. 1981. Request for an Opinion. Int J Syst Evol Microbiol 2016; 66:3249-3251. 🇯🇵

Parent taxon: Moorella Collins et al. 1994

Assigned by: Collins MD, Lawson PA, Willems A, Cordoba JJ, Fernandez-Garayzabal J, Garcia P, Cai J, Hippe H, Farrow JA. The phylogeny of the genus Clostridium: proposal of five new genera and eleven new species combinations. Int J Syst Bacteriol 1994; 44:812-826. 🇬🇧

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Record number: 778306