UIC-2011-132 – Ecumicin: New Tuberculosis Treatment Effective Against Drug-Resistant Strains of TB

Despite the availability of effective treatments, tuberculosis (TB) remains a major public health threat; the rise of multi drug-resistant (MDR) and extensively drug-resistant (XDR) TB is calling for the discovery of new drugs. The UIC Anti-Tuberculosis Screening Program has now evaluated over 65,000 extracts derived from 7,000 actinomycete strains of the Extract Collection of Useful Microorganisms (ECUM) at Myongji University. One priority hit was strain E5123, which was later identified as Nonomuraea sp., based on the strong anti-TB activity of its extract against M. tuberculosis, including strains that are resistant to existing actinomycete-derived antibiotics, and its inhibition of non-replicating M. tuberculosis. This strain was then specially processed to produce the active fractions, resulting in the isolation of a new type of antibiotic called, Ecumicin. Nelson Grihalde grihalde@otm.uic.edu 312-996-4129