Five metabolites of actinomycete X-14881 were isolated from the fermentation broth and characterized. The major component was identified as [3R-(3a,6aP,7t9,12a,12aa)] or [3S-(3p, 6aa, 7a,12~,12a~)]-6a, 7,12-trihydroxy-3, 4, 6a, 7,12,12a-hexahydro-8-methoxy-3-methylbenz[a]anthracen-1(2H)-one; the other four are closely related derivatives thereof. Actinomycete X-14881 produces an antibiotic complex, shown to be inactive in vivo, together with a number of other secondary metabolites, five of which were isolated and identified. All five possess the carbon skeleton of benz[a]anthracene. These compounds were designated X-14881 A-E (1-5) and showed no significant antimicrobial activity in vitro. X-14881 B was produced in larger quantities than any of the other four and did not exhibit any interesting pharmacological effects. In this paper we describe the fermentation, isolation and chemical characterization of X-14881 A-E. The constitution and relative configuration of component X-14881 A (1) could be ascertained
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