''Saccharopolyspora spinosa'' is a species of
actinobacterium
The Actinomycetota (or Actinobacteria) are a diverse phylum of Gram-positive bacteria with high GC content. They can be terrestrial or aquatic. They are of great importance to land flora because of their contributions to soil systems. In soil t ...
first isolated from soil in a rum still in an abandoned sugar mill on the
Virgin Islands
The Virgin Islands () are an archipelago between the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean and northeastern Caribbean Sea, geographically forming part of the Leeward Islands of the Lesser Antilles in the Caribbean, Caribbean islands or West Indie ...
. It was discovered and described by researchers Mertz and Yao while collecting specimens to be screened for novel
antibiotic
An antibiotic is a type of antimicrobial substance active against bacteria. It is the most important type of antibacterial agent for fighting pathogenic bacteria, bacterial infections, and antibiotic medications are widely used in the therapy ...
s.
It develops aerial, pale, yellowish pink
hyphae
A hypha (; ) is a long, branching, filamentous structure of a fungus, oomycete, or actinobacterium. In most fungi, hyphae are the main mode of vegetative growth, and are collectively called a mycelium.
Structure
A hypha consists of one o ...
and bears long chains of
spore
In biology, a spore is a unit of sexual reproduction, sexual (in fungi) or asexual reproduction that may be adapted for biological dispersal, dispersal and for survival, often for extended periods of time, in unfavourable conditions. Spores fo ...
s encased in spiny spore sheaths. It can also reproduce by
fragmentation in an aqueous environment. Its type strain is A83543.1 (= NRRL 18395).
''Saccharopolyspora spinosa'' is the source of a family of insecticidal compounds called
spinosyns. They act as
neurotoxin
Neurotoxins are toxins that are destructive to nervous tissue, nerve tissue (causing neurotoxicity). Neurotoxins are an extensive class of exogenous chemical neurological insult (medical), insultsSpencer 2000 that can adversely affect function ...
s by activation of
nicotinic acetylcholine receptor
Nicotinic acetylcholine receptors, or nAChRs, are Receptor (biochemistry), receptor polypeptides that respond to the neurotransmitter acetylcholine. Nicotinic receptors also respond to drugs such as the agonist nicotine. They are found in the c ...
s in insects. The insecticide
Spinetoram
Spinetoram (marketed as Cheristin in its topical veterinary dosage-form) is an insecticidal mixture of two active neurotoxic constituents of '' Saccharopolyspora spinosa''. It is used to control pest insects in stored grain and on domestic cats.
...
is composed of two synthetic derivatives of spinosyns.
See also
*
Spinosad
Spinosad is an insecticide based on chemical compounds found in the bacterial species '' Saccharopolyspora spinosa''. The genus '' Saccharopolyspora'' was discovered in 1985 in isolates from crushed sugarcane. The bacteria produce yellowish-p ...
References
Further reading
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External links
*
Type strain of ''Saccharopolyspora spinosa'' at Bac''Dive'' - the Bacterial Diversity Metadatabase
Pseudonocardineae
Bacteria described in 1990
{{Pseudonocardineae-stub