Research projects

Bioluminescence is emitted by an enzymatic reaction involving a bioluminescent substrate luciferin and an enzyme luciferase. One of luciferases, Renilla (RLuc), generates cofactor-free bioluminescence with native coelenterazine (nCTZ). The design of novel CTZ derivatives resulting in enhanced optical intensity with prolonged bioluminescence is challenging. Our developed novel CTZ derivative with extension at the C-6 position of the imidazopyrazinone show significant bioluminescence emission with RLuc variant (RLuc8.6-535). This CTZ derivative exhibited about 50 times higher than that of DeepBlueCTM. Optical bioimaging of protein-protein interactions (PPIs) facilitates comprehensive elucidation of intracellular molecular events. We developed an optical measure for visualizing molecular tension triggered by any PPI named “a combinational probe”. This type of probe expands capabilities of luciferases as a tool for analyses of molecular dynamics and cell signaling in living subjects.