Abstract
Four strains isolated in the last 15 years were revealed to be identical, in the 16S rDNA, to MCRO19, a sequence deposited in GenBank since 1995. In a polyphasic analysis including phenotypic and genotypic features the five strains (including MCRO19), which had been isolated in four European countries, turned out to represent an unique taxonomic entity. They are scotochromogenic slow growers and are genetically related to the group including, along with Mycobacterium simiae, 15 other species. In addition to the description of the new species, for which the name Mycobacterium europaeum is proposed, a thorough revision of phenotypic and genotypic characters of the species related to M. simiae was conducted which leads us to suggest, for this group, the denomination of M. simiae complex. FI-95228 (DSM45397=CCUG58464) was chosen as type strain.