Isolation and Characterization of Chloromycetin

A new crystalline antibiotic, obtained from filtrates of submerged aerated cultures of a Streptomyces sp., for which the name Chloromycetin mas proposed, has been described in a preliminary note. It contained both nitrogen and non-ionic chlorine and appeared to be a neutral compound. In addition to a marked bacteriostatic activity in broth-dilution assays against several Gram-negative bacteria, it showed marked chemotherapeutic activity against Rickettsia prowazeki in screening tests with chick embryos (1) and against a number of rickettsiae and one virus when tested in embryonated eggs or in mice (2). Furthermore, it had a low order of toxicity in experimental animals and appeared to be well absorbed when administered orally to mice and dogs (1). It is the purpose of this paper to record pertinent observations made prior to the isolation, to give specific examples of two different methods of isolation, and to describe certain properties of the crystalline compound.