A preparation containing a mixture of glycosidic antibiotics isolated from Streptomyces olivoreticuli with fluorescent microscopy applications and potential antineoplastic activities. Olivomycin preferentially binds to DNA and can be utilized as a fluorescent marker during the characterization of heterochromatin. Additionally, binding to DNA inhibits both RNA transcription and RNA elongation by RNA polymerase; therefore protein synthesis is inhibited. In addition, olivomycin antibiotics are able to induce apoptosis in tumor cells through a mechanism that has not yet been fully elucidated.

A mixture of several closely related glycosidic antibiotics obtained from Actinomyces (or Streptomyces) olivoreticuli. They are used as fluorescent dyes that bind to DNA and prevent both RNA and protein synthesis and are also used as antineoplastic agents.