REDUCTION OF OXYLUCIFERIN BY ATOMIC HYDROGEN

Abstract
Some luminous animals, e.g., Cypridina (Crustacea), contain luciferin which oxidizes to oxyluciferin in aqueous solution containing O. During attempts to excite luciferase to luminescence by energy of recombination of H atoms, the authors observed that dry oxyluciferin can be reduced to luciferin, confirming results obtained by reducing oxyluciferin in aqueous solution, and rendering it quite certain that the luciferin-oxyluciferin change is a dehydrogenation-hydro-genation reaction. When dry luciferase and luciferin are exposed to low concentration atomic H there may be observed at times a faint bluish glow which breaks into incandescence on raising the atomic H concentration. The faint glow of Cypridina may be a luminescence or a low temp. incandescence. Willemite, etc., show undoubted luminescence in atomic H.