Bluensomycin

Bluensomycin (glebomycin) is an aminocyclitol antibiotic that differs structurally from dihydrostreptomycin in having bluensidine (1D-1-O-carbamoyl-3-guanidinodeoxy-scyllo-inositol) rather than streptidine (1,3-diguanidino-1,3-dideoxy-scyllo-inositol) as its aminocyclitol moiety. Extracts of the bluensomycin producer Streptomyces hygroscopicus form glebosus ATCC 14607 (S. glebosus) were found to have aminodeoxy-scyllo-inositol kinase activity but to lack 1D-1-guanidino-3-amino-1,3-dideoxy-scyllo-inositol kinase activity, showing for the first time that these two reactions in streptomycin producers must be catalyzed by different enzymes. S. glebosus extracts therefore possess the same five enzymes required for synthesis of guanidinodeoxy-scyllo-inositol from myo-inositol that are found in streptomycin producers but lack the next three of the four enzymes found in streptomycin producers that are required to synthesize the second guanidino group of streptidine-P.