A gene encoding a gamma-butyrolactone autoregulator receptor was cloned in to E. coli from Streptomyces ambofaciens producing spiramycin, a macrolide antibiotic used in both veterinary medicine and human medicine. A 714-bp intact receptor gene (saaR) was obtained by PCR and genomic Southern hybridization with the 100-bp PCR product as a probe. To clarify the in vivo function of saaR, a saaR-disrupted strain was constructed by means of homologous recombination, and phenotypes were compared with those of the wild-type strain. The number of saaR-disruptant spores was 4-fold less than that of the wild-type strain. In addition, saaR deletion from the S. ambofaciens chromosome resulted in complete loss of spiramycin production suggesting that saaR is a rare positive regulator, controlling both spiramycin biosynthesis and sporulation.