Review Article
Colorful World of Microbes: Carotenoids and Their Applications
Table 5
Microbial pigments as potential virulence agents [
18] (ROS reactive oxygen species).
| Pigment | Chemistry | Color | Human pathogens | Virulence functions |
| Staphyloxanthin | Carotenoid | Golden | Staphylococcus aureus | Antioxidant, detoxify ROS |
| Pyocyanin | Phenazine derived Zwitterion | Blue green | Pseudomonas sp. | Cytotoxicity, neutrophil apoptosis, ciliary dysmotility, proinflammatory |
| Melanin | Polyacetylene or polypyrrole polymers | Dark-brown, black | Cryptococcus neoformans, Wangiella dermatitidis, Sporothrix schenckii, Sporothrix schenckii, Aspergillus sp. | Antioxidants Antiphagocytic Block antimicrobials |
| Porphyrin | Heteromacrocycle | Black | Porphyromonas gingivalis | Antioxidant, detoxify ROS |
| Granadaene | Ornithine rhamno-polyene | Orange red | Streptococcus agalactiae | Antioxidant, detoxify ROS |
| Violacein | Rearranged pyrrolidone scaffold | Purple | Chromobacterium violaceum | Antioxidant, detoxify ROS |
| Prodigiosin | Linear tripyrrole | Red | Serratia marcescens | Immunosuppressant |
| Hemozoin | β-hematin aggregates | Brown-black | Plasmodium sp. | Detoxification, macrophage suppression, proinflammatory |
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