The proliferation of multi-drug resistant bacterial strains and resultant nosocomial
infections has risen dramatically, as evidenced by the increase in numbers of recorded
deaths rising from 51 to 1651 over the last decade in the UK and on average 5500 deaths
a year in the US [1], for the same period, attributed to methicillin resistant Staphylococcus aureus. This rise has become not only a health issue, but one of political and economic
consequence fuelling the search for new antibiotic leads that may prove more effective
than current market options.
Two new compounds have been isolated from Pycnostachys reticulata (Lamiaceae). These have been identified as a new cycloabietane glycoside and 15-membered
macrocyclic diterpenoid. The structures of these compounds were elucidated from a
series of 1D and 2D NMR experiments. Anti-staphylococcal activity of these compounds
was assessed against a panel of standard and multi-drug resistant S.aureus bacterial strains with MICs ranging from 1-<256µgml-1.
Acknowledgements: Stiefel Laboratories.
References: 1. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. (2007). Emerging Infectious
Diseases 13:12
