Recent research advances on Chromobacterium violaceum

Chromobacterium violaceum is a gram-negative bacterium, which has been used widely in microbiology labs involved in quorum sensing (QS) research. Among the QS-regulated traits of this bacterium, violacein production has received the maximum attention. Violacein production in this organism, however is not under sole control of QS machinery, and other QS-regulated traits of this bacterium also need to be investigated in better detail. Though not often involved in human infections, this bacterium is being viewed as an emerging pathogen. This review attempts to highlight the recent research advances on C. violaceum, with respect to violacein biosynthesis, development of various applications of this bacterium and its bioactive metabolite violacein, and its pathogenicity.