Living lights
Bioluminescence, the emission of cold light by living organisms, has been extensively used for the study of biological processes and for bioanalytical purposes. Chemically, bioluminescent reactions involve the oxidation of different substrates (luciferins) and enzymes (luciferases), resulting in photons of visible light. Some luminescent systems may include a luciferin–luciferase complex that is more stable than its dissociated components, known as a photoprotein.
Oliveira’s research group is studying bioluminescent marine organisms in order to isolate novel photoproteins and luciferases that can be employed for analytical purposes in biomedicine and biotechnology.
