Bioluminescence: Causes, Examples, Facts, Topics, Definition & Meaning

Bioluminescence is the natural production and emission of light by living organisms through a chemical reaction, commonly found in marine species, fungi, and certain insects. It serves various ecological functions, such as defence, communication, and attracting prey. It is found in both vertebrates and invertebrates. Bioluminescence is one of the topics in Biology and they carry a weightage of 2% in NEET and 3% in CBSE and other Paramedical Exams.

What is Bioluminescence?

A living thing producing and emitting light is known as bioluminescence. Animals that glow in the dark can be found in all marine ecosystems, including those at the ocean's top and deep bottom.

Energy generated from chemical reactions occurring inside (or ejected by) a bioluminescent organism is what causes it to emit light. Animal species, from bacteria to sharks, have some bioluminescent individuals. Some important points for bioluminescence are discussed below:

• These are commonly found in Marine organisms both vertebrates and invertebrates.

• Some of the microorganisms like fungi and bacteria also produce their light which is autogenic.

• Bioluminescence is used for various purposes such as invading predators, attracting prey, and mating and within some it is also used for communication.

• The chemical component of luciferin has evolved over species and uniformly. This indicates that the bioluminescence has evolved independently about 40 times in the evolutionary history.

• Apart from this, it is also used in genetic engineering, and biomedical research and this has also led to the development of some of the bioluminescence plants.

Also Read:

• MCQ Practice on Animal Kingdom Classification

• Animal Kingdom

• Class Chondrichthyes

• Morphology Of Flowering Plants

Behavior of Bioluminescence

Bioluminescence is important for the survival of several species particularly those that live in the deep sea environment. It is used for protection, communication, species recognition and mating. Some of the basic behavioural signs of Bioluminescence are discussed below:

• Some species like squid release the glowing cloud to confuse their predators.

• The deep sea fish uses luminous lures in order to attract their prey and display light organs to hide, intimate and illuminate their surroundings.

• The Firefly also uses its bioluminescence to mate. For example, the male Photinus pyralis firefly flashes while flying, and females respond with their flashes to attract mates.

• Anglerfish use a glowing lure on their dorsal spine to attract prey, which they quickly capture with their large jaws when the prey approaches the bait.

Metabolism in bioluminescence

The metabolic process that involves oxygen and luciferin releases enough energy to excite a molecule inside the cell and cause it to emit visible light. The majority of these early luminescent species went on to evolve oxygen-using systems, but they kept their luminescence as a component of associated metabolic pathways or for any survival advantages that it could have.

It is challenging to determine the functional significance of bioluminescence in lower species like bacteria, dinoflagellates, and fungi. It has been hypothesized that the bioluminescent process was initially employed to remove oxygen hazardous to primitive varieties of bacteria that originated when oxygen was missing or extremely rare in Earth's atmosphere, in part because the glow of luminous bacteria is quenched when oxygen is removed.

Types of Questions Asked from Bioluminescence

During exam preparation, different types of questions about the bioluminescence are asked. The table below contains the different patterns of questions asked in different exams.

Tips, Tricks, and Strategies for Bioluminescence

It takes effort to remember everything in a single go. We made the entire problem easy. Some of the tricks regarding bioluminescence are given below which you can use to memorise the important points.

Mechanism of Bioluminescence

"LLOR: Luciferin, Luciferase, Oxygen, Radiant energy"
L: Luciferin (light-emitting molecule)
L: Luciferase (the enzyme that catalyzes the reaction)
O: Oxygen (required for the oxidation of luciferin)
R: Radiant energy (light emitted as a result of the reaction)

Functions of Bioluminescence

"CAPS: Communication, Attraction, Protection, Signaling"
C: Communication (within species for mating or signalling)
A: Attraction (to lure prey or mates)
P: Protection (camouflage or evading predators)
S: Signaling (species recognition, warning signals)

Types of Bioluminescence

"AB: Autogenic, Bacteriogenic"
A: Autogenic (light produced by the organism itself)
B: Bacteriogenic (light produced by symbiotic bacteria)

Applications of Bioluminescence

"GLIM: Genetic Engineering, Lighting, Imaging, Monitoring"
G: Genetic Engineering (used in molecular biology and gene tracking)
L: Lighting (bioluminescent organisms for aesthetic or public lighting)
I: Imaging (biomedical imaging and research)
M: Monitoring (environmental pollution detection using bioluminescence)

Evolution of Bioluminescence

"LLL: Luciferins, Light, Lineage"
L: Luciferins (evolved uniformly in many species)
L: Light (produced for different survival purposes)
L: Lineage (evolved independently more than 40 times in different lineages)

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