KINETICS OF ULTRAWEAK LIGHT-EMISSION FROM HUMAN ERYTHROLEUKEMIA K562 CELLS UPON ELECTROPORATION

Electroporation involves the application of an electric pulse that cre ates transient aqueous channels (electropores) across the lipid bilaye r membranes. Here, we describe an instrument set up suitable to record ultraweak light emission from human erythroleukemia K562 cells during and immediately after delivery of electric pulses. Most of light was emitted in the first seconds after each pulse, following a complex dec ay which can be fitted by a double exponential equation characterized by two different time constants (T-1 and T-2), both in the order of se conds. T-1 was approximately 10-fold shorter than T-2 and both time co nstants were dependent on field strength of the electric pulse. The ef fect of various antioxidants on the amount of emitted photons and on T -1 and T-2 values was investigated, in order to shed some light on the chemical species responsible for cellular luminescence. (C) 1998 Else vier Science B.V. All rights reserved.