![cover image](https://wikiwandv2-19431.kxcdn.com/_next/image?url=https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/d0/Firefly-luciferin-3D-vdW.png/640px-Firefly-luciferin-3D-vdW.png&w=640&q=50)
Luciferin
Class of light-emitting chemical compounds / From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Dear Wikiwand AI, let's keep it short by simply answering these key questions:
Can you list the top facts and stats about Luciferins?
Summarize this article for a 10 year old
SHOW ALL QUESTIONS
Luciferin (from Latin lucifer 'light-bearer') is a generic term for the light-emitting compound found in organisms that generate bioluminescence. Luciferins typically undergo an enzyme-catalyzed reaction with molecular oxygen. The resulting transformation, which usually involves breaking off a molecular fragment, produces an excited state intermediate that emits light upon decaying to its ground state. The term may refer to molecules that are substrates for both luciferases and photoproteins.[1]
![]() | You can help expand this article with text translated from the corresponding article in German. (November 2014) Click [show] for important translation instructions.
|
![](http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/thumb/d/d0/Firefly-luciferin-3D-vdW.png/640px-Firefly-luciferin-3D-vdW.png)