Optimal environmental conditions and nutrient concentrations for the synthesis of bacterial luciferase in Photobacterium phosphoreum.

Several studies (Eley & Cormier, 1968; Cormier, Eley, Abe & Nakano, 1969; Eley et al. 1970) on intact organisms and partially purified luciferase preparations of Photobacterium phosphoreum (Bergey's Manual of Determinative Bacteriology, I 957) indicated that further studies on the purified luciferase from this bacterium might provide some new understanding about bacterial bioluminescence in general. These studies, which would require large quantities of luciferase, were begun with the search for a suitable medium for the large-scale production of the bacteria with high yields of luciferase. Of the several conditions found to enhance the synthesis of luciferase, yeast extract, aeration, pH and temperature produced the most dramatic effects. A medium has been formulated which, under optimal environmental conditions for this bacterium, promotes the synthesis of luciferase in high yield relative to the total soluble protein. Data in this paper also show that the bioluminescence rate in vivo is directly related to the luciferase activity in extracts.