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Science 8 October 1971:
Vol. 174. no. 4005, pp. 159 - 161
DOI: 10.1126/science.174.4005.159
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Articles

Chemosterilant Action of Anthramycin: A Proposed Mechanism

Susan B. Horwitz 1, Shen Chin Chang 2, Arthur P. Grollman 3, and Alexej B. Borcaronkovec 4

1 Department of Pharmacology, Albert Einstein College of Medicine, New York 10461
2 Entomology Research Division, Agricultural Research Service, U.S. Department of Agriculture, Beltsville, Maryland 20705
3 Departments of Pharmacology, Medicine, and Biology, Albert Einstein College of Medicine
4 Entomology Research Division, Agricultural Research Service, U.S. Department of Agriculture

The activity of anthramycin and structurally related analogs as chemosterilants of the housefly, Musca domestica L., correlates closely with the action of these compounds as inhibitors of Escherichia coli RNA polymerase. Since inhibition of RNA polymerase by anthramycin reflects binding of this antibiotic to the DNA primer required for enzyme activity, we propose that the interaction of anthramycin with DNA may also account for its action as a chemosterilant.

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Science. ISSN 0036-8075 (print), 1095-9203 (online)