Amycolatopsis is a genus of high GC-content bacteria within the family Pseudonocardiaceae. The genus is known for producing many types of antibiotics, including Epoxyquinomicin, related to Amycolatopsis sulphurea, are a class of weak antibiotic and anti-inflammatory agent. Vancomycin, obtained from Amycolatopsis orientalis, is being used for infections resistant to other antibiotics. Ristocetin, made by Amycolatopsis lurida, was an antibiotic but ceased to apply due to adverse effects of platelet agglutination. Now it is used to assay von Willebrand disease.
Degradation of bio-polymers Several bacteria from the genus Amycolatopsis are able to enzymatically hydrolyze the ester bonds of poly-lactic acid (PLA) films in aquatic medium. So far, it is one of the few known bacteria able to biodegrade the bioplastic outside compost facilities in a relatively short period of time.
Phylogeny The currently accepted taxonomy is based on the List of Prokaryotic names with Standing in Nomenclature (LPSN) and National Center for Biotechnology Information (NCBI).
16S rRNA based LTP_10_2024
Species incertae sedis:
A. arida Nouioui et al. 2018 A. carbonis Oyuntsetseg and Kim 2024 "A. cyclosori" Chen et al. 2025 "A. cynarae" Deng et al. 2024
"A. flava" Wei et al. 2015
"A. lactamdurans" Stapley et al. 1973 ex Barreiro et al. 2000 A. nalaikhensis Oyuntsetseg & Kim 2024
"A. pittospori" Kaewkla and Franco 2021 A. ponsaeliensis Thompson et al. 2025 A. rhizosphaerihabitans Chen et al. 2025
See also List of bacterial orders List of bacteria genera
References