Review of Prodigiosin, Pigmentation in Serratia marcescens

Prodigiosins, a family of natural red pigments characterized by a common pyrrolylpyrromethane skeleton, are produced by various bacteria that first characterized from Serratia marcescens. This pigment is a promising drug owing to its reported characteristics of having antifungal, immunosuppressive and anti-proliferative activity. From an industrial point of view to obtain optimal conditions to enhance the growth of Serratia marcescens and the pigment production is necessity. In present study, the production condition, physicochemical and functional characteristics, structure, genetic and gene expression, apoptosis and toxigenic effects of prodigiosin will be discussed in-order to contribute to the world of Serratia marcescens with respect to its prodigiosin production property.