Studies on microbial transformation of meloxicam by fungi.

Screening-scale studies were performed with 26 fungal cultures for their ability to transform the anti-inflammatory drug meloxicam. Among the different fungi screened, a filamentous fungus, Cunninghamella blakesleeana NCIM 687, transformed meloxicam to three metabolites in significant quantities. The transformation of meloxicam was confirmed by high-performance liquid chromatography (HPLC). Based on the liquid chromatography-tandem mass spectrometry (LC-MS/MS) data, two metabolites were predicted to be 5-hydroxymethyl meloxicam and 5-carboxy meloxicam, the major mammalian metabolites reported previously. A new metabolite was produced, which is not detected in mammalian systems. Glucose medium, pH of 6.0, temperature of 27 degrees , 5-day incubation period, dimethylformamide as solvent, and glucose concentration of 2.0%were found to be suitable for maximum transformation of meloxicam when studied separately. It is concluded that C. blakesleeana can be employed for biotransformation of drugs for production of novel metabolites.