Bioluminescence activity of Latia luciferin analogs

Latia luciferin analogs were synthesized and their bioluminescence activiti es were measured. The Latia luciferase was found to recognize strictly the 2,6,6-trimethylcyclohexene ring moiety in the luciferin structure. While th e enol ether analogs exhibited no bioluminescence activity, the correspondi ng enol acetate analog possessed 60% activity compared to natural luciferin having an enol formate structure, implying that the initial step of the li ght producing reaction is an enzymatic hydrolysis to yield the correspondin g enolate anion. (C) 2000 Elsevier Science Ltd. All rights reserved.