The Streptomyces flora of Badia region of Jordan and its potential as a source of antibiotics active against antibiotic-resistant bacteria

A total of 60 different Streptomyces isolates were recovered from 12 soil samples collected from the Badia region north-eastern of Jordan. These were then characterized by conventional methods and assessed for their antagonistic activity against three pathogenic and antibiotic-resistant bacteria. Results indicated that grey and white colour series were the most abundant with 30% of all isolates active against, at least, one of the test organisms; Staphylococcus aureus, Escherichia coli and Klebsiella pneumoniae. Overall screening results revealed the characterization of four Streptomyces isolates (I(7), AC(32), Bb(36) and Z(11)) which inhibited the growth of all tested pathogens. The unusual antibiotic profile of these isolates underlined their potential as a source of novel antibiotics. (C) 2002 Published by Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.