luciferin
noun
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Definition of luciferin
: any of various organic substances in luminescent organisms (such as fireflies) that upon oxidation produce a virtually heatless light
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Examples of luciferin in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
Just four luciferins are responsible for most of the light production in the ocean. — Quanta Magazine, "In the Deep, Clues to How Life Makes Light," 1 Dec. 2016 Some species of dinoflagellates light up using a similar to chemical reaction to that of fireflies; both use a naturally occurring molecule called luciferin, named for Lucifer, the light-bearer. — Liz Langley, National Geographic, "How bioluminescence works in nature," 2 May 2019 Curiously, there are far fewer luciferins than luciferases. — Quanta Magazine, "In the Deep, Clues to How Life Makes Light," 1 Dec. 2016 While species tend to have unique luciferases, many share the same luciferin. — Quanta Magazine, "In the Deep, Clues to How Life Makes Light," 1 Dec. 2016 Like many bioluminescent animals their light is created by a reaction between the light-emitting molecule luciferin and the enzyme luciferase. — National Geographic, "Living Fireworks, These Animals Produce Light Shows with Their Bodies," 30 June 2018 These animals create light by combining the molecule luciferin with oxygen. — Kyle Mizokami, Popular Mechanics, "The U.S. and Soviet Union Once Investigated Bioluminescence as a Way to Track Submarines," 23 Jan. 2018 The researchers figured out how to get the luciferase and luciferin into plant leaves, which then glow with a dim light. — Avery Thompson, Popular Mechanics, "MIT Researchers Want to Make Glow-In-the-Dark Plants," 14 Dec. 2017 In fireflies, luciferase binds to another chemical called luciferin, which causes a reaction that emits light. — Avery Thompson, Popular Mechanics, "MIT Researchers Want to Make Glow-In-the-Dark Plants," 14 Dec. 2017These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'luciferin.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
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More Definitions for luciferin
luciferin
noun
lu路cif路er路in
| \ -(蓹-)r蓹n
\
\
Medical Definition of luciferin
: any of various organic substances in luminescent organisms that furnish practically heatless light in undergoing oxidation promoted by luciferase