A convenient laboratory procedure for the preparation of cortalcerone, a fungal antibiotic β-pyrone

Article abstract of DOI:10.1016/0008-6215(94)90025-6

The unsaturated β-pyrone antibiotic cotalcerone (2-hydroxy-6H-3-pyrone-2-carboxaldehyde hydrate, was prepared from aqueous macerates of mycelia from the basidiomycete Corticium caeruleum, by selective solubilization and precipitation followed by repeated silica-gel column chromatography.Subsequent studies showed that cortalcerone is derived from D-glucose through a multi-step pathway involving oxidation of D-glucose.