Pigments and Pathogenesis

In recent years pigments have been identified in human nutrition to have a positive effect on human health and reduction to oxidative stress exposure. In the media it has become common wisdom that colourful food is naturally better to consume for humans and animals. Now recently it has been shown that pigments aid microbial species as well, and conversely these microbial pigments may result in more morbidity and mortality for the human host infected by these colourful microbes. Similar pigments that are available for consumption in food are also present in many bacterial species. Presumably these pigments aid the bacteria in their survival in the environment and within a human or animal host. Importantly, interference with the production of certain microbial pigments results in some bacterial strains that are more susceptible to environmental stressors and the host immune system. These studies seem to indicate a role of pigments for in vivo survival by microbial species.