D-luciferin is the natural substrate of firefly luciferase. In the presence of magnesium ions, luciferase catalyzes the reaction of luciferin with ATP, which is then oxidized to form a dioxetane structure that emits yellow-green light [1]. When the substrate luciferin is in excess, the 560 nm chemiluminescence generated by the Luciferin-luciferase luminescent reaction reaches its peak within a few seconds, and the light output is proportional to the luciferase concentration. Chemiluminescent techniques are virtually background-free, making the luciferase reporter an ideal tool for detecting low-level gene expression. 0.02 pg of luciferase can be reliably measured in a standard fluorescence counter. D-luciferin is a commonly used reporter gene for ATP detection, cell viability assay, reporter gene detection, active molecular screening and bacterial counting. D-luciferin is widely used in live animal imaging. Cells expressing the luciferase gene were transplanted into research animals and injected with D-luciferin to be able to detect changes in brightness by bioluminescence imaging (BLI)[2].
D-Luciferin has three product forms, D-Luciferin (D-Luciferin, free acid), D-Luciferin potassium salt (D-Luciferin, potassium salt) and D-Luciferin sodium salt (D-Luciferin, sodium salt ). The potassium and sodium salt forms of D-fluorescein are the most versatile because they are both readily soluble in water. Potassium salt is also the main form used in live animal testing.
References:
[1]. Giuseppe Meroni, et al. D-Luciferin, derivatives and analogues: synthesis and in vitro/in vivo luciferase-catalyzed bioluminescent activity. ARKIVOC 2009 (i) 265-288.
[2]. Sangyub Kim, et al. Optimizing live-animal bioluminescence imaging prediction of tumor burden in human prostate cancer xenograft models in SCID-NSG mice.2019 Jun;79(9):949-960. doi: 10.1002/pros.23802. Epub 2019 Apr 8.
D-荧光素是萤火虫荧光素酶 (Luciferase) 的天然底物。在镁离子存在的条件下,荧光素酶催化荧光素与ATP反应,接着它被氧化形成二氧杂环丁烷结构并发出黄绿色的光[1]。当底物荧光素过量时,Luciferin-luciferase发光反应产生的560 nm化学发光在几秒钟内达到峰值,并且光输出与荧光素酶浓度成正比。化学发光技术实际上是无背景的,故而荧光素酶报告基因是检测低水平基因表达的理想工具。在标准荧光计数仪中可以可靠地测量到0.02 pg的荧光素酶。D-荧光素是ATP检测、细胞活力测定、报告基因检测、活性分子筛选以及细菌计数的常用报告基因。D-荧光素被广泛应用于活体动物成像。将表达荧光素酶基因的细胞移植到研究动物体内,注射D-荧光素后能够通过生物发光成像(BLI)检测亮度变化[2]。
D-荧光素有三种产品形式,D-荧光素(D-Luciferin, free acid)、D-荧光素钾盐(D-Luciferin, potassium salt)和D-荧光素钠盐(D-Luciferin, sodium salt)。D-荧光素钾盐、钠盐的形式是最通用的,因为它们都易溶于水。钾盐也是活体动物检测使用的主要形式。
















