Staphylococcus aureus’s golden-yellow pigment staphyloxanthin: production enhancement, analytical characterization, and biological attributes

Staphyloxanthin (STX), an apocarotenoid golden yellow pigment produced by Staphylococcus aureus isolates, is endowed with potent antioxidant capacity. It plays a crucial role in combating reactive oxygen species (ROS), exhibiting considerable application prospects. This review provides a comprehensive overview of the biosynthetic pathway and various approaches for STX bioproduction in S. aureus. Moreover, this review focuses on advancements in biotechnology for enhancing the yield of STX in S. aureus, including mutagenesis breeding, metabolic engineering, transcriptional regulation, and the optimization of fermentation conditions. This review addresses the extraction process, purification, and analytical characterization of STX pigment. Additionally, this review highlights the diverse applications of STX in healthcare settings as an antibacterial, antifungal, antiparasitic, antioxidant, anticancer, and DNA damage protection agent. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first review reporting the biotechnological aspects of STX from S. aureus as a natural biotechnologically valued product.