Production of Antimicrobial Substances by Strains of Myxobacteria Corallococcus and Myxococcus

We prepared culture extracts of 174 Corallococcus and 207 Myxococcus strains isolated in Korea, and compared their antimicrobial activity against Candida albicans, Pseudomonas aeruginosa, and Staphylococcus aureus. The percentage of strains showing antifungal activity was lower in Corallococcus (7.5% [13 of the 174 strains]) than in Myxococcus (51.7% [107 of the 207 strains]). However, the percentage of strains exhibiting antibacterial activity was higher in Corallococcus (12.1% [21 strains]) than in Myxococcus (1% [2 strains]). The culture extracts of 6 Corallococcus strains inhibited both P. aeruginosa and S. aureus and displayed similar high-performance liquid chromatography chromatograms, although the shapes of their fruiting bodies were dissimilar. The rate of production of antibacterial substances was the highest when the strains were cultured in CYS medium for more than 6 days.