Bioluminescence: Living Lights, Lights for Living

197 Pages·2013·4.11 MB·English

by  Thérèse Wilson, J. Woodland Hastings

Bioluminescence
L I V I N G L I G H TS ,
L I G H TS F O R L I V I N G
Thérèse Wilson
J. Woodland Hastings
B I O L U M I N E S C E N C E
B I O L U M I N E S C E N C E
Living Lights, Lights for Living
Thérèse Wilson
J. Woodland Hastings
Harvard University Press
Cambridge, Massachusetts
London, En gland
2013
Copyright © 2013 by the President and Fellows of Harvard College
All rights reserved
Printed in Canada
Library of Congress Cataloging-i n-P ublication Data
Wilson, Therese, 1925–
Bioluminescence : living lights, lights for living / Therese Wilson,
J. Woodland Hastings.
p. cm.
Includes index.
ISBN 978- 0- 674- 06716- 5 (alk. paper)
1. Bioluminescence. I. Hastings, J. Woodland ( John Woodland), 1927–.
II. Title.
QH641.W55 2013
572'.4358—dc23 2012022227
CONTENTS
Ac know ledgm ents vii
Introduction 1
PART I : FIVE DIFFERENT BIOLUMINESCENCE SYSTEMS 7
1. A Marine Crustacean 9
Bioluminescent f shes as plagiarists and thieves
2. J ellyf sh and Green Fluorescent Protein 2 1
A soft coral, a calcium-s ensitive protein, and f sh with related
b ioluminescence systems
3. F iref ies and Other Beetles 3 1
Luciferase- dependent bioluminescence color and rhythmic displays
4. Dinof agellates and Krill 4 5
The sparkling clocks of the oceans and bioluminescent shrimp
5. B acteria 6 1
Bacterial “communication,” symbioses, and milky seas
PART II : D IVERSITY, FUNCTIONS, AND EVOLUTIONARY ORIGINS
OF BIOLUMINESCENCE 77
6. S hort Accounts of Other Luminous Organisms 7 9
Having different and not well- characterized biochemistries
7. B ioluminescence in the Oceans 1 05
Anglerf sh, dragonf sh, and a Lake Baikal parenthesis
8. T he Many Functions of Bioluminescence 1 19
Defense, offense, communication, and propagation
9. T he Origins and Evolution of Bioluminescence 1 25
How did luciferases originate?
PART III : BOOKENDS 133
10. A pplications 1 35
Tools for biology, medicine, and public health
11. H ow Does Life Make Light? 1 47
“Excited molecules” and bioluminescence
vi C O N T E N T S
Glossary 1 63
Further Reading 1 69
Illustration Credits 1 77
Index 181
ACK NOWL EDGM ENTS
It is our pleas ure to acknowledge our debt to the many who have
been critical to the birth of this book. Foremost among those are
the students, postdoctoral fellows, and visitors to the Hastings and
Wilson lab, who, over the years, created a unique and unforgettable
atmosphere of free exchange of ideas, and joy in exploring all sorts of
topics related to the emission of light by living (and non- living) things.
Our debt to all of them cannot be expressed adequately.
We are especially grateful to Jim Morin, who read the entire manu-
script and pointed out its weak points, and to Anne Goldizen for her
editorial suggestions throughout the manuscript. Many friends did us
the favor of reading chapters or parts of chapters. Their comments
and suggestions w ere universally appreciated. Among those to whom
we are especially grateful are Etelvino Bechara, Arthur Halpern,
Andy Knoll, Neil Krieger, Ken Nealson, John Paxton, Deb Robert-
son, Vadim Viviani, and Edith Widder. Thérèse Wilson is espe-
cially grateful to Meredithe Applebury for her advice and encour-
agement at the very early stages of the work.
Without illustrations, a book like this would not see the light of day.
We thank all those who have given us permission to use photos and
illustrations, especially Milton Cormier, Larry Fritz, Helen Ghir-
adella, Karsten Hartel, Peter Herring, and Christopher Kenaley.
Thanks also to Marvin Morales for the chemical formulae. For all
other f gures, we were exceedingly lucky to be able to rely on Renate
Hellmiss, whose artistry, competence, and patience made working
with her a pleas ure at all stages of the work.
Finally, we are grateful for f nancial help from the Faculty of Arts
and Sciences and the Department of Molecular and Cellular Biology
of Harvard University.