Isolation and biological activity of a microbial conversion product of aflatoxin B1

Abstract

ONE of the most striking and significant developments in synthetic chemistry has been the use of biological systems to achieve chemical transformations, especially the oxidation-reduction of steroids and alkaloids. Based on an analogous biological system, we have attempted to transform aflatoxin B1, a toxic secondary metabolite of Aspergillus flavus, by employing a known steroid-hydroxylating micro-organism. © 1968 Nature Publishing Group.