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Bacteria with tannase activity were isolated from the feces of the Japanese large wood mouse, Apodemus speciosus. They were largely classified into two groups: Gram-positive cocci and Gram-positive bacilli. Genotypic analysis using a species-specific PCR assay as well as biochemical tests identified all cocci as Streptococcus gallolyticus. A PCR assay targeting a genus-specific sequence in the 16S/23S rDNA spacer region and additional 16S rDNA sequencing indicated that the bacilli belong to the genus Lactobacillus, with L. animalis and L. murinus being closely related taxa. Subsequent estimation of guanine-plus-cytosine content, amplified ribosomal DNA restriction analysis, and DNA/DNA hybridization assay confirmed that the bacilli are homologous to each other but different from L. animalis or L. murinus. Consequently, a novel species of the genus Lactobacillus may be proposed. To date, this study is …