Fine Literature: Shedding Light on Bacteria

by Elio
 

Enhanced bioluminescence in an arcA mu­tant of V. fi­scheri. Culture flasks of wild type strain ES114 and its arcA mu­tant illuminated (top panel) or in the dark (bot­tom panel). Source.

Why some bacteria are bioluminescent is a topic that just won't go away. In an earlier post, we mentioned a propo­sal for a role of light in the repair of UV-induced DNA damage. In 2005, Eric Stabb wrote a review in Microbe (an ASM magazine) that pleasantly helps in formulating the issues and clarifying the nature of this fascinating phenomenon. We may not have the definitive answers, but Stabb helps us think about the questions.