Large scale production, purification and a study of some spectral properties of Penitrem A

A large scale production of the tremorgenic toxin, Penitrem A, from the cultures of Penicillium (P.) palitans and P. crustosum for studying its spectral characteristics was attained. From several fermentation runs using Czapex-Dox medium, P. crustosum was shown to produce nearly 80% more toxic metabolite than P. palitans. A method involving silica-gel column chromatography for a single step isolation of the toxin from the crude extract of the mycelial mats was developed. Some spectral properties of Penitrem A were discussed.