Ctenophora
Comb jellies
Phylum recognized by
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General Description
Light used for instant signaling: comb jellies
Source and Additional Information
An enzyme called photoprotein in comb jellies produces light when calcium changes the enzyme's shape, releasing energy.
"In a firefly bioluminescence reaction, an enzyme known as a luciferase uses adenosine triphosphate (ATP) to activate a molecule called a luciferin. The product of this reaction combines with molecular oxygen to produce an excited-state oxyluciferin species. When oxyluciferin relaxes back to its ground state, energy is released in the form of light…Jellyfish-like animals called ctenophores—can do without [ATP to jump-start bioluminescence]. Instead, they use a luciferin of intrinsically higher energy and prepackage it with oxygen in an enzyme known as a photoprotein. Calcium activates the reaction by changing the shape of the photoprotein, which releases the invested energy in the form of light." (Pepling 2006)
Learn more about this functional adaptation.
References
- Pepling, Rachel Sheremeta. 2006. All That Glows: Bioluminescence provides practical applications while still remaining a mystery. Chemical & Engineering News. 84(14): 36-38.
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Last curated:
07 Aug 2009
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Steve Haddock.
Curator.
"Ctenophora". Encyclopedia of Life, available from "http://www.eol.org/pages/69". Accessed
15 Mar 2010.
