Reaction: D-firefly luciferin + O2 + ATP = firefly oxyluciferin + CO2 + AMP + diphosphate + hν
For diagram of reaction, click here
Glossary: D-firefly luciferin = Photinus-luciferin = (S)-4,5-dihydro-2-(6-hydroxy-1,3-benzothiazol-2-yl)thiazole-4-carboxylate
firefly oxyluciferin = 4,5-dihydro-2-(6-hydroxy-1,3-benzothiazol-2-yl)thiazol-4-one
Other name(s): Photinus-luciferin 4-monooxygenase (ATP-hydrolysing); luciferase (firefly luciferin); Photinus luciferin 4-monooxygenase (adenosine triphosphate-hydrolyzing); firefly luciferin luciferase; Photinus pyralis luciferase; Photinus-luciferin:oxygen 4-oxidoreductase (decarboxylating, ATP-hydrolysing)
Systematic name: D-firefly luciferin:oxygen 4-oxidoreductase (decarboxylating, ATP-hydrolysing)
Comments: The enzyme, which is found in fireflies (Lampyridae), is responsible for their biolouminescence. The reaction begins with the formation of an acid anhydride between the carboxylic group of D-firefly luciferin and AMP, with the release of diphosphate. An oxygenation follows, with release of the AMP group and formation of a very short-lived peroxide that cyclizes into a dioxetanone structure, which collapses, releasing a CO2 molecule. The spontaneous breakdown of the dioxetanone (rather than the hydrolysis of the adenylate) releases the energy (about 50 kcal/mole) that is necessary to generate the excited state of oxyluciferin. The excited luciferin then emitts a photon, returning to its ground state. The enzyme has a secondary acyl-CoA ligase activity when acting on L-firefly luciferin (see EC 6.2.1.52).
Links to other databases: BRENDA, EXPASY, KEGG, MetaCyc, PDB, CAS registry number: 61970-00-1
References:
1. Green, A. A. and McElroy, W. D. Crystalline firefly luciferase. Biochim. Biophys. Acta 20 (1956) 170-176. [PMID: 13315363]
2. White, E.H., McCapra, F., Field, G.F. and McElroy, W.D. The structure and synthesis of firefly luciferin. J. Am. Chem. Soc. 83 (1961) 2402-2403.
3. Hopkins, T.A., Seliger, H.H., White, E.H. and Cass, M.W. The chemiluminescence of firefly luciferin. A model for the bioluminescent reaction and identification of the product excited state. J. Am. Chem. Soc. 89 (1967) 7148-7150. [PMID: 6064360]
4. White, E.H., Rapaport, E., Hopkins, T.A. and Seliger, H.H. Chemi- and bioluminescence of firefly luciferin. J. Am. Chem. Soc. 91 (1969) 2178-2180. [PMID: 5784183]
5. Koo, J.A., Schmidt, S.P. and Schuster, G.B. Bioluminescence of the firefly: key steps in the formation of the electronically excited state for model systems. Proc. Natl Acad. Sci. USA 75 (1978) 30-33. [PMID: 272645]
6. de Wet, J.R., Wood, K.V., Helinski, D.R. and DeLuca, M. Cloning of firefly luciferase cDNA and the expression of active luciferase in Escherichia coli. Proc. Natl Acad. Sci. USA 82 (1985) 7870-7873. [PMID: 3906652]
7. Nakamura, M., Maki, S., Amano, Y., Ohkita, Y., Niwa, K., Hirano, T., Ohmiya, Y. and Niwa, H. Firefly luciferase exhibits bimodal action depending on the luciferin chirality. Biochem. Biophys. Res. Commun. 331 (2005) 471-475. [PMID: 15850783]
8. Sundlov, J.A., Fontaine, D.M., Southworth, T.L., Branchini, B.R. and Gulick, A.M. Crystal structure of firefly luciferase in a second catalytic conformation supports a domain alternation mechanism. Biochemistry 51 (2012) 6493-6495. [PMID: 22852753]