An ancestral luciferase in the Malpighi tubules of a non-bioluminescent beetle!
Nenhuma Miniatura disponível
Data
2009-01-01
Orientador
Coorientador
Pós-graduação
Curso de graduação
Título da Revista
ISSN da Revista
Título de Volume
Editor
Royal Soc Chemistry
Tipo
Artigo
Direito de acesso
Acesso restrito
Resumo
The evolutionary origin of beetle bioluminescence is enigmatic. Previously, weak luciferase activity was found in the non-bioluminescent larvae of Tenebrio molitor (Coleoptera: Tenebrionidae), but the detailed tissular origin and identity of the luciferase-like enzyme remained unknown. Using a closely related giant mealworm, Zophobas morio, here we show that the luciferase-like enzyme is located in the Malpighi tubules. cDNA cloning of this luciferase like enzyme, showed that it is a short AMP-ligase with weak luciferase activity which diverged long ago from beetle luciferases. The results indicate that the potential for bioluminescence in AMP-ligases is very ancient and provide a first reasonable protoluciferase model to investigate the origin and evolution of beetle luciferases.
Descrição
Palavras-chave
Idioma
Inglês
Como citar
Photochemical & Photobiological Sciences. Cambridge: Royal Soc Chemistry, v. 8, n. 1, p. 57-61, 2009.
