New antibiotic pigments related to fusarubin from Fusarium solani (Mart.) Sacc. I. Fermentation, isolation, and antimicrobial activities.

A cholesterol-decomposing fungus, Fusarium solani (Mart.) SACC. strain PP 96, was found to produce several different naphthaquinone pigments in a glycerol-mineral salts medium. Three novel compounds structurally related to fusarubin were isolated by chloroform extration followed by silicic acid column chromatography and preparative thin-layer chromatography. The purified compounds were found to have relatively low activity against bacteria, yeasts and filamentous fungi.