Prodigiosene (methyl-3-pentyl-6-methoxyprodigiosene) is a kind of secondary metabolite abstracted from the cell wall of Serratia marcescens. A latest Iran study found that prodigiosene can induce apoptosis in colorectal cancer stem-like cells by increasing the expression of miR-16-1 and decreasing its target gene, survivin. This evidence concerns the gene BIRC5 and colorectal cancer.