PRAMANICIN, A NOVEL ANTIMICROBIAL AGENT FROM A FUNGAL FERMENTATION

The antimicrobial agent pramanicin (1), and a related fatty acid (6), were isolated from a corn-based solid or a lactose-containing liquid fermentation of a sterile fungus found growing in grass. The structures of these compounds were determined by a variety of spectral means including UV, IR, and NMR spectroscopy, as well as mass spectrometry. A number of chemical derivatives are also presented here. Pramanicin represents a new class of antimicrobial agents containing a highly functionalized head group and functionalized fatty side chain.