INVITRO ANTIMICROBIAL ACTIVITY OF A NEW ANTIBIOTIC, MDL-62,879 (GE2270-A)

MDL 62,879 (GE2270 A) is a new peptide antibiotic that inhibits protein synthesis through an interaction with elongation factor Tu. MDL 62,879 was very active against gram-positive clinical isolates, particularly staphylococci and enterococci, for which MICs for 90% of isolates were less-than-or-equal-to 0.13 mug/ml. It was equally active against isolates resistant to beta-lactams, erythromycin, gentamicin, and glycopeptides. It also had activity against Mycobacterium tuberculosis. MDL 62,879 had moderate bactericidal activity against staphylococci.