Biochem/physiol Actions

Prodigiosin, a tripyrrole red pigment biosynthesized by Serratia marcescens and other bacteria, exhibits antibacterial, anticancer, cytotoxic, immunosuppressive, and antiproliferative activities. Prodigiosin induces apoptosis in hematopoietic cancer cells and cells derived from other human cancers, including gastric and colon with no marked toxicity in nonmalignant cell lines. Morphological analysis of prodigiosin-treated cells demonstrated that prodigiosin induces cell shrinkage, chromatin condensation, reorganization of actin microfilament architecture, and detachment of cells from the cell culture substrate. Different targets and mechanisms of action are described for prodigiosin, including induction of single- and double-strand DNA breaks, modulation of pH, regulation of mitogen-activated protein kinase, and inhibition of cell cycle progression.