An anthracycline antitumor antibiotic; intercalates with DNA; inhibits the DNA-unwinding and ATPase activities of P. falciparum DNA helicase 60 (IC50s = 2 and 0.5 μM, respectively); inhibits the DNA cleavage activity of vaccinia virus topoisomerase (IC50 = 0.7 μM); inhibits the growth of MCF-7 and MDA-MB-231 human breast cancer cells (IC50s = 0.242 and 0.37 μM, respectively).