Firefly Luciferase-Structure and Function

In order to better understand the enzymatic structure and function of firefly luciferase, the cDNA encoding this protein was recently cloned. In this report we present the extension of our earlier work with the cloning of several luciferases from a bioluminescent click beetle Pyrophorus plagiophthalamus. The luciferases of this beetle produce bioluminescence of different colors. We isolated 13 cDNA clones which were capable of producing luminescence in E. coli of four different colors green, yellow-green, yellow, and orange. The amino acid sequence of these luciferases are approximately 96 identical with each other, but are less than 50 identical with the firefly luciferase. Keywords Codon DNA, Bioluminescence, Click beetle, Luciferase, Reprints.