A new polyene macrolide family, closely related to the pentaene macrolide antibiotic roflamycoin, was isolated from the both fermentation broth and biomass of Streptomyces durmitorensis wild type strain MS405. The main compound was identified by NMR and FTMS spectrometry as 32,33-didehydroroflamycoin (1; DDHR).
Additional four structurally related compounds were determined solely by MS analysis. DDHR induces cell death by apoptosis in various cancer cell lines as demonstrated by DNA fragmentation.
Striking feature of DDHR is its internal fluorescence allowing visualization of labeled plasma membranes and internal membrane structures.