Peptide antibiotic K-582 production in relation to amino acid metabolism in Metarrhizium anisopliae.

Formation of the basic antibiotic, K-582 was stimulated by supplying Metarrhizium anisopliae U-47 with several amino acids present in its structure. The addition of L-arginine to the basal medium resulted in the almost exclusive formation of K-582 B, while L-lysine increased K-582 A formation. Some carbon sources were observed to have effects similar to those obtained with the above mentioned amino acids. Furthermore, when L-arginine was added in excess to the basal medium, free gamma-hydroxyarginine, which is a major constituent of the antibiotic, accumulated extra- and intra-cellularly. Free gamma-hydroxyarginine isolated from the culture broth of this microorganism was the threo-L-isomer. K-582 formation was repressed by glycerol, which exerted catabolite repression of gamma-hydroxyarginine synthesis.