Chromobacterium violaceum

For bacteria previously classified as Chromobacterium violaceum (Ford 1927) or Chromobacterium violaceum (Leifson 1956), see Janthinobacterium lividum.

Chromobacterium violaceum
Blood agar plate culture of C. violaceum. Image from the CDC.
Scientific classification Edit this classification
Domain: Bacteria
Phylum: Pseudomonadota
Class: Betaproteobacteria
Order: Neisseriales
Family: Neisseriaceae
Genus: Chromobacterium
Species:
C. violaceum
Binomial name
Chromobacterium violaceum
(Bergonzini 1880)

Chromobacterium violaceum is a Gram-negative, facultative anaerobic, non-sporing coccobacillus. It is motile with the help of a single flagellum which is located at the pole of the coccobacillus. Usually, there are one or two more lateral flagella as well.[1] It is part of the normal flora of water and soil of tropical and sub-tropical regions of the world. It produces a natural antibiotic called violacein, which may be useful for the treatment of colon and other cancers.[2] It grows readily on nutrient agar, producing distinctive smooth low convex colonies with a characteristic striking dark violet metallic sheen (due to violacein production).[3] Some strains of the bacteria which do not produce this pigment have also been reported.[4] It has the ability to break down tarballs.[5]

  1. ^ Ray, P; Sharma, J; Marak, SK; Singhi, S; Taneja, N; Garg, RK (2004). "Chromobacterium violaceum septicaemia from North India". Indian J Med Res. 120 (6): 523–6. PMID 15654137.
  2. ^ Kodach LL, Bos CL, Durán N, Peppelenbosch MP, Ferreira CV, Hardwick JC (2006). "Violacein synergistically increases 5-fluorouracil cytotoxicity, induces apoptosis and inhibits Akt-mediated signal transduction in human colorectal cancer cells". Carcinogenesis. 27 (3): 508–16. doi:10.1093/carcin/bgi307. PMID 16344270.
  3. ^ Brazilian National Genome Project Consortium (2003). "The complete genome sequence of Chromobacterium violaceum reveals remarkable and exploitable bacterial adaptability". Proc Natl Acad Sci USA. 100 (20): 11660–5. Bibcode:2003PNAS..10011660.. doi:10.1073/pnas.1832124100. PMC 208814. PMID 14500782.
  4. ^ Lee, J; Kim, JS; Nahm, CH; Choi, JW; Kim, J; Pai, SH; Moon, KH; Lee, K; Chong, Y (1999). "Two Cases of Chromobacterium violaceum Infection after Injury in a Subtropical Region". J Clin Microbiol. 37 (6): 2068–2070. doi:10.1128/JCM.37.6.2068-2070.1999. PMC 85035. PMID 10325383.
  5. ^ Itah AY, Essien JP (2005). "Growth Profile and Hydrocarbonoclastic Potential of Microorganisms Isolated from Tarballs in the Bight of Bonny, Nigeria". World Journal of Microbiology and Biotechnology. 21 (6–7): 1317–22. doi:10.1007/s11274-004-6694-z. S2CID 84888286.