Actinomadura

The genus Actinomadura is one of four genera of actinobacteria that belong to the family Thermomonosporaceae. It contains aerobic, Gram-positive, non-acid-fast, non-motile, chemo-organotrophic actinomycetes that produce well-developed, non-fragmenting vegetative mycelia and aerial hyphae that differentiate into surface-ornamented spore chains. These chains are of various lengths and can be straight, hooked or spiral. The genus currently comprises 37 species with validly published names with standing in nomenclature, although the species status of some strains remains uncertain, and further comparative studies are needed.

Members of the genus are not characterized chemotaxonomically by type III/B cell walls (meso-diaminopimelic acid and madurose are present) with peptidoglycan structures of the acetyl type. The predominant menaquinone types are MK-9(H4), MK-9(H6) and MK-9(H8). The phospholipid pattern is PI (diphosphatidylglycerol and phosphatidylinositol are present as major phospholipids) and the fatty acid pattern is type 3a (branched saturated and unsaturated fatty acids plus tuberculostearic acid).