Tobramycin was initially identified as part of a broad-spectrum Antibiotic complex, nebramycin, which was first isolated in 1967 by Eli Lilly and Company. One component of this complex, first designated as Factor 6, subsequently became Tobramycin, since it was derived from Streptomyces tenebrarius. Tobramycin is most similar in structure to members of the kanamycin group of aminoglycosides.
