Nucleotide sequences and expression of genes from Streptomyces purpurascens that cause the production of new anthracyclines in Streptomyces galilaeus.

Six open reading frames, rdmA to rdmF, in a 6,077-bp segment of Streptomyces purpurascens DNA which caused the production of hybrid anthracyclines were identified. The minimal fragment that produced anthracyclines modified at the 10th position contained rdmB to rdmD; rdmE is the gene for aklavinone-11-hydroxylase. RdmC is similar to a putative open reading frame in the daunorubicin biosynthetic cluster of Streptomyces peucetius and is likely to participate in the removal of the side chain at the 10th position.