ABSTRACT
A distinct strain named Micromonospora sp. Rc5 was isolated from Sinai desert of Egypt and recorded high antagonistic activities against some food and bloodborne pathogens. Morphological and chemotaxonomy characterization confirmed that this isolate belongs to genus Micromonospora. Sequencing of partial 16S rDNA and BLASTN showed that isolate Rc5 is identical to Micromonospora haikouensis (99%) but with low bootstrap value in NJ phylogenetic tree. Comprehensive optimization of several growth factors was performed including initial pH, incubation periods, and different sources of carbon and nitrogen. The highest yield of antimicrobial agent production was obtained after 8 days of incubation at 30°C, pH 6.0, 3 x 105CFU/ml in soya bean meal broth media with agitation of 150 rpm. A dramatic proportional decrease occurred with 0.3, 0.6, 0.9 µg active fraction /ml against Staphylococcus aureus culture and reached to complete inhibition at a minimum inhibitory concentration of (1.5 µg /ml). The physicochemical characterization of the purified fraction was identified as phthalate derivative. Our results indicated that Rc5 generated potential antimicrobial compounds against foodborne pathogens and may combat resistant strains of Staphylococcus aureus.