Extracts of the Egyptian marine actinomycete, Nocardia sp. ALAA 2000, were found to be highly bioactive. It was isolated from the marine red alga Laurenica spectabilis collected off the Ras-Gharib coast of the Red Sea, Egypt. According to detailed identification studies, the strain was classified as a member of the genus Nocardia. The cultivation and chemical analysis of this species yielded four structurally related compounds namely, chrysophanol 8-methyl ether (1), asphodelin; 4,7'-bichrysophanol (2) and justicidin B (3), in addition to a novel bioactive compound ayamycin; 1,1-dichloro-4-ethyl-5-(4-nitro-phenyl)-hexan-2-one (4) which is unique in contain both chlorination and a rarely observed nitro group. The compounds were isolated by a series of chromatographic steps and their structures of 1approximately 3 secured by detailed spectroscopic analysis of the MS and NMR data whereas that of 4 was elucidated by single crystal X-ray diffraction studies. These compounds displayed different potent antimicrobial activity against both Gram-positive and Gram-negative bacteria as well as fungi with MIC ranging from 0.1 to 10 microg/ml.