Biochemistry of Luminescence

9303842 Shimomura生物发光是一种化学发光现象，发生在各种生物体的体内或分泌物中。 光发射所需的能量由特定荧光素酶催化的荧光素的氧化提供，或通过涉及发光蛋白的反应提供。 不同类型的生物体的发光反应往往明显不同，因而存在许多不同的发光体系。 该项目的最终目标是对生物发光及其作用进行完整的生物化学理解。 为了实现这一目标，有必要确定各种不同类型的生物发光系统中所需的关键组分并确定其化学结构，同时阐明发光反应的机理。 生物发光的知识包括8种不同的生物发光蛋白的化学结构和19种不同的生物发光系统的重要信息，其中P.I.贡献了5个发光蛋白和12个生物发光系统，包括发光蛋白水母发光蛋白的系统。 将对真菌和磷虾的生物发光进行研究。 生物发光反应中的氧化机制也将被研究。 本研究的长期目标是对生物发光进行完整的生物化学理解，其中包括发光的基本反应机制和生物发光反应在生物体中的作用。 在这项研究中，最重要的是确定关键物质的化学性质，并阐明在不同类型的生物体中发生的各种不同的生物发光系统中所涉及的反应机制。 ***

9303842 Shimomura Bioluminescence is a phenomenon of chemiluminescence that occurs in the body or secretion of wide varieties of organisms. The energy required for light emission is supplied by the oxidation of a luciferin catalyzed by a specific luciferase, or through a reaction involving a photoprotein. The light-emitting reactions of different types of organisms are often significantly different, thus there are a number of different luminescence systems. The ultimate goal of this project is the complete biochemical understanding of bioluminescence and its roles. To achieve this goal, it is essential to identify the necessary key components and determine their chemical structures in various different types of bioluminescence system and also to elucidate the mechanism of the light-emitting reactions. The knowledge on bioluminescence presently available includes the chemical structures of 8 different luciferins and significant information on 19 different bioluminescence systems, of which the P.I. contributed to 5 of the luciferins and 12 of the bioluminescence systems, including the system of the photoprotein aequorin. Studies will be carried out on bioluminescence in fungi and euphausiid shrimp (krill). The mechanism of oxygenation in bioluminescence reactions will also be studied. %%% The long-range objective of this research is the complete biochemical understanding of bioluminescence, which encompasses the fundamental reaction mechanism of light emission and the roles of bioluminescence reactions in living organisms. In this research, it is of primary importance to determine the chemical nature of the key substances and to elucidate the mechanism of the reactions involved, in various different bioluminescence systems that occur in diverse types of organisms. ***