Genes involved in the biosynthesis of p-aminobenzoic acid (PABA) in Streptomyces lividans 1326 were cloned in pBR322 by complementing a pabB mutant of Escherichia coli. A 2.7-kb BamHI-SstI fragment of the cloned DNA complemented pabA and pabB mutations in both E. coli and S. lividans; complementation in S. lividans was accompanied by integration of the recombinant plasmid into the host chromosome. The nucleotide (nt) sequence of the 2.7-kb fragment contained two open reading frames, the deduced amino acid sequences of which were similar to those of pabA and pabB products from other bacteria. The nt sequences indicated that pabA and pabB are closely linked in S. lividans and supported cloning evidence that the genes are expressed from a promoter with features resembling those of most E. coli promoters.