Bioluminescence in Fungi
INTRODUCTION
What is Bioluminescence?
The current paper main focus is on bioluminescent Fungi but the basic features of bioluminescence discussed are common to all bioluminescent organisms.
Bioluminescence is simply light created by living organisms. Probably the most commonly known example of bioluminescence by North Americans is the firefly, which lights its abdomen during its mating season to communicate with potential mates. This bioluminescent ability occurs in 25 different phyla many of which are totally unrelated and diverse with the phylum Fungi included in this list
(an illustration of a bioluminescent fungi is displayed in figure 1). One of the features of biological light that distinguishes it from
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Luciferins and Luciferase differ chemically in different organisms but they all require molecular energy
(ATP) for the reaction. 2) The chemical energy in stage one excites a specific molecule (The Luminescent Molecule: the combining of Luciferase and Luciferin).
The excitement is caused by the increased energy level of the luminescent molecule. The result of this excitement is decay which is manifested in the form of photon emissions, which produces the light. The light given off does not depend on light or other energy taken in by the organism and is just the byproduct of the chemical reaction and is therefore cold light. The bioluminescence in fungi occurs intracellulary and has been noted at the spore level(Burr 1985, Newton 1952 and Herring 1978). This may at times be mistaken for a extracellular source of light but this is due to the diffusion of the light through the cells of the fungus. In examining the photograph in figure 1, it appear that the cap of the fungus is glowing but after study, it was observed that just the gill structures that emits the light and the cap
(which is thin) emits the light of the
The fungal cell wall plays an important role in the physiological adaptation of the organism in its environment. The yeast’s cell wall serves several essential functions for the such as the ability to hold its shape, the regulation of water flow into and out of the cell, and the prevention of foreign bodies that might be toxic from entering.1 It constantly changes during cell division, growth and morphogenesis; this dynamic feature dictates the organism’s protection or susceptibility to the environment.2,3,4,5
Introduction: Photosynthesis can be defined as a solar powered process that removes atmospheric carbon dioxide and transforms it into oxygen and carbohydrates (Harris-Haller 2014). Photosynthesis can be considered to be the most important biochemical process on Earth because it helps plants to grow its roots, leaves, and fruits, and plants serve as autotrophs which are crucial to the food chain on earth. Several factors determine the process of photosynthesis. Light is one these factors and is the main subject of this experiment. The intensity of light is a property of light that is important for photosynthesis to occur. Brighter light causes more light to touch the surface of the plant which increases the rate of photosynthesis (Speer 1997). This is why there is a tendency of higher rates of photosynthesis in climates with a lot of sunlight than areas that primarily do not get as much sunlight. Light wavelength is also a property of
direct calorimetry. Furthermore, the amount of oxygen in the chamber reveals the amount of cellular respiration of the organism. While also, test the effects of decreasing oxygen, and later increasing the heat on the metabolic rate of goldfish. I hypothesize that an increase in temperature will increase their metabolic rate
Organisms that use the process of photosynthesis to create sugar to use for energy have a greater rate of photosynthesis when the intensity of the light source is the greatest. If light is far away from the leaves of a plant, for example, then it takes more time for the light to be absorbed and used in photosynthesis. When it takes more time for the light to reach the leaves, the rate of photosynthesis decreases. As the light intensity increases, I would expect the rate of photosynthesis to increase as well. Therefore, I would expect that when the Elodea is closest to the light bulb, the rate of photosynthesis would be the greatest. My hypothesis would be: If light intensity affects the rate of photosynthesis, and the rate of photosynthesis is measured using the amount of
Why do organisms respond to environmental factors? Organisms keep themselves in the most favorable conditions in order to survive. Pill bugs are members of the terrestrial isopod family. Terrestrial Isopods retrieve oxygen through their gills and live in dark damp environments. These organisms eat decaying plant and animal matter. Sow bugs, also known as pill bugs were tested to see how they react or respond to environmental factors. In this lab two different experiments were conducted. During the first experiment pill bugs were tested to see if they prefer a light environment or a dark environment. Throughout second experiment the pill bugs were tested to see how many of the bugs prefer an environment with vinegar or environment
When the beetroot sample is heated for a longer period of time, it is exposed to the vigorous and frequent vibrating molecules for a longer duration. This further disrupts the cell membranes making them more fragile, thus more pigment will leak out into the external solution. With more leakage of the betacyanin pigment, the % transmittance should be lower, indicating that the % of light that is able to pass through the beetroot solution should be less as duration heated increases.
Our organism's energy requirements are chemical is leaves and they absorb oxygen by their skin.
What is the relationship between an increase in light intensity and photosynthetic rate in tomato leaves?
Chemiluminescence is a reaction well known to those who enjoy crime scene shows. Luminol is first synthesized in the experiment. Then, the crude luminol produced is oxidized to release photons giving off a light blue glow in a dark room. In a crime scene show, the blood acts as a catalyst aiding in the oxidation of luminol and hydrogen peroxide resulting in the blue glow 1.
Our results indicate that green chads float at a faster rate when exposed to red light than reddish purple chads. A higher oxygen production rate allowed the chads to float. Because oxygen is a product of photosynthesis, we can conclude that a higher rate of floating chads indicates a higher rate of photosynthesis. Therefore, the green chads photosynthesized at a faster rate than the reddish-purple chads Conclusion/Context: Our data supported our hypothesis.
The sun is a source of UV light that is very hard for most people to escape. It affects our cells in various ways and sometimes causes cell death. In this experiment, to inspect the damage done by UV irradiation on the genetic composition of Saccharomyces cerevisiae also known as common Baker’s yeast. The strains of this yeast used were the cells that were mutated and the TRP1 gene was inactive. In this strain, the cells would not be able to produce tryptophan, which they need in order to grow. Phenotypic reversion of this gene was examined by first spreading the cells on SD medium without tryptophan and a complete SC medium with tryptophan. The yeast on the SC medium while they SD mostly died on the plate. However, in part two of the experiment whenever these plates were exposed to UV light the TRP1 gene was reactivated and growth occurred. On the SC plates as time went on there were less colonies formed. In turn, on the SD plates the pattern of growth followed a bell shaped curve; there were more colonies after the plate was exposed to half the time maximum time then when the plate was exposed to the maximum time. These results indicate that mutagenesis of Saccharomyces cerevisiae did in fact occur.
Abstract In lab, luminol was synthesized by reacting 5-nitro-2,3-dihydrophthalazine-1,4 dione with sodium hydroxide, sodium hydrosulfite, and acetic acid. Once synthesized, luminol was added to various mixtures in which a catalyst such as potassium ferricyanide, as well as the addition of hydrogen peroxide caused chemiluminescene to occur. This change in an excited state to a ground state in the product produced a fluorescent blue light, especially in the concentrated solutions of A and B. Introduction The purpose of the experiment was to synthesize luminol and observe its chemiluminescent properties.
As mentioned above, the increase in the growth of hypocotyl of white radish sprout is large and most stable on red light. In addition, that on white light has no tendency and that on blue and green light are small, although larger than that on no light. This result suggests that light seems to help the gravitropism on radish, and this effect may be maximized on red light.
However, the photosynthetic process can be affected by different environmental factors. In the following experiment, we tested the effects that the light intensity, light wavelength and pigment had on photosynthesis. The action spectrum of photosynthesis shows which wavelength of light is the most effective using only one line. The absorption spectrum plots how much light is absorbed at different wavelengths by one or more different pigment types. Organisms have different optimal functional ranges, so it is for our benefit to discover the conditions that this process works best. If the environmental conditions of light intensity, light wavelength and pigment type are changed, then the rate of photosynthesis will increase with average light intensity and under the wavelengths of white light which will correspond to the absorption spectrum of the pigments. The null hypothesis to this would be; if the environmental conditions light intensity, light wavelength and pigment type are changed, then the rate of photosynthesis will decrease with average light intensity and under the white light which will correspond to the absorption spectrum of the pigments.
In this lab, varying wavelengths were used to test how light affects photosynthesis and respiration as a whole. The absorbance of lights from 380 nm to 720 nm of chlorophyll pigment from the Elodea sample