PURIFICATION OF AN INTRACELLULAR BACTERIAL BETA-LACTAM BY AFFINITY-CHROMATOGRAPHY

The purification of naturally occurring β-lactams by conventional separation techniques is often complex and time consuming. The method described here permits the concentration and rapid isolation of β-lactams from large sample volumes by affinity chromatography. Using a aztreonam as the ligand, the isolation of an intracelullar monobactam from a strain of Pseudomonas aeruginosa is reported. The method employed is quick and simple to run and as such increases the diversity of bacterial samples that can be screened for novel β-lactam activity. © 1990.