Purification of antibiotics from the biocontrol agent Streptomyces anulatus S37 by centrifugal partition chromatography

• Bioactive metabolites were purified by CPC from a novel actinomycete strain (Streptomyces anulatus S37).
• The main active molecules were identified as streptochlorin, nigericin and piericidin A1 by 1H and 13C NMR.
• The identified metabolites provide an inhibitory activity on the growth of Botrytis cinerea in Vitis vinifera plantlets.

A novel actinomycete strain, Streptomyces anulatus S37, has been isolated from the rhizosphere of healthy Moroccan Vitis vinifera on the basis on its ability to promote grapevine growth and to induce natural defences against various phytopathogens. In the present work, the main bioactive metabolites produced by S. anulatus S37 were isolated. A crude n-BuOH extract of the S37 fermentation broth was firstly partitioned in a biphasic solvent system composed of n-heptane, methanol, and water (5:1.5:3.5, v/v). The most active organic fraction (1.1 g) as revealed by TLC-bioautography was subsequently separated by a two-step centrifugal partition chromatography procedure. The first separation was performed in the ascending mode at 6 mL/min with the biphasic solvent system n-heptane, ethyl acetate, methanol and water (2:1:2:1, v/v), to finally recover 40 mg of a pure compound identified as streptochlorin by NMR spectroscopy. In a second separation, the solvent system n-heptane, acetonitrile, and water (5:5:4, v/v) was used in the ascending mode at 3 mL/min to purify 135 mg of nigericin and 53 mg of piericidin A1. Assays performed with the three compounds have confirmed their inhibitory impact on the growth of Botryris cinerea in dual confrontation and also on V. vinifera L. plantlets.