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Firefly Light Flashing: Oxygen Supply Mechanism

Yueh-Lin Tsai, Chia-Wei Li, Tzay-Ming Hong, Jen-Zon Ho, En-Cheng Yang, Wen-Yen Wu, G. Margaritondo, Su-Ting Hsu, Edwin B. L. Ong, and Y. Hwu
Phys. Rev. Lett. 113, 258103 – Published 17 December 2014
Physics logo See Synopsis: How Oxygen Kindles Fireflies

Abstract

Firefly luminescence is an intriguing phenomenon with potential technological applications, whose biochemistry background was only recently established. The physics side of this phenomenon, however, was still unclear, specifically as far as the oxygen supply mechanism for light flashing is concerned. This uncertainty is due to the complex microscopic structure of the tracheal system: without fully knowing its geometry, one cannot reliably test the proposed mechanisms. We solved this problem using synchrotron phase contrast microtomography and transmission x-ray microscopy, finding that the oxygen consumption corresponding to mitochondria functions exceeds the maximum rate of oxygen diffusion from the tracheal system to the photocytes. Furthermore, the flashing mechanism uses a large portion of this maximum rate. Thus, the flashing control requires passivation of the mitochondria functions, e.g., by nitric oxide, and switching of the oxygen supply from them to photoluminescence.

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  • Received 28 July 2014

DOI:https://doi.org/10.1103/PhysRevLett.113.258103

© 2014 American Physical Society

Synopsis

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How Oxygen Kindles Fireflies

Published 17 December 2014

X-ray images of the light-emitting organs in fireflies clarify the mechanism by which oxygen controls the insects’ luminescence.

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Authors & Affiliations

Yueh-Lin Tsai1,2, Chia-Wei Li2,*, Tzay-Ming Hong3, Jen-Zon Ho4, En-Cheng Yang5, Wen-Yen Wu5, G. Margaritondo6, Su-Ting Hsu1, Edwin B. L. Ong1, and Y. Hwu1,7,†

  • 1Institute of Physics, Academia Sinica, Taipei 115, Taiwan
  • 2Institute of Molecular and Cellular Biology, National Tsing Hua University, Hsinchu 300, Taiwan
  • 3Department of Physics, National Tsing Hua University, Hsinchu 300, Taiwan
  • 4Endemic Species Research Institute, Nantou 552, Taiwan
  • 5Department of Entomology, National Taiwan University, Taipei 106, Taiwan
  • 6Faculté des Sciences de Base, Ecole Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne (EPFL), CH-1015 Lausanne, Switzerland
  • 7Advanced Optoelectronic Technology Center, National Cheng Kung University, Tainan 701, Taiwan

  • *Corresponding author. cwli@life.nthu.edu.tw
  • Corresponding author. phhwu@sinica.edu.tw

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Issue

Vol. 113, Iss. 25 — 19 December 2014

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