New heteroatomatic compounds from the deep

Dermacoccus abyssi sp. nov., MT1.1, is a piezotolerant actinobacterial strain isolated from Mariana Trench sediment at a depth 10898m. The fermentation process using ISP2 medium lead to production of several new and novel pigmented heteroaromatic (oxidised and reduced) phenazine compounds. Extensive use was made of 1D, 2D NMR data and high resolution MS to determine the structures of the compounds. To confirm the structure of the most complex pentacyclic analogue we made use of electronic structure calculations to compare experimental and theoretical UV-Vis and 13C NMR spectra which confirmed a novel structural class of phenazine derivatives, the dermacozines. The biological activity of all compounds was assessed in anti-Alzheimer, antifouling, antibiotic and NF-kB screens.