title: Rapid and scalable assembly of firefly luciferase substrates.
abstract: Bioluminescence imaging with luciferase-luciferin pairs is a popular method for visualizing biological processes in vivo. Unfortunately, most luciferins are difficult to access and remain prohibitively expensive for some imaging applications. Here we report cost-effective and efficient syntheses of d-luciferin and 6'-aminoluciferin, two widely used bioluminescent substrates. Our approach employs inexpensive anilines and Appel's salt to generate the luciferin cores in a single pot. Additionally, the syntheses are scalable and can provide multi-gram quantities of both substrates. The streamlined production and improved accessibility of luciferin reagents will bolster in vivo imaging efforts.
authors.affiliation: Departments of Chemistry, University of California, Irvine, CA, USA. jpresche@uci.edu.
authors.forename: David C
authors.initials: DC
authors.lastname: McCutcheon
authors.forename: William B
authors.initials: WB
authors.lastname: Porterfield
authors.forename: Jennifer A
authors.initials: JA
authors.lastname: Prescher
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D048888:Fireflies; D049454:Firefly Luciferin / Q000737:chemistry / Q000378:metabolism*; D049409:Luciferases, Firefly / Q000378:metabolism*; D049408:Luminescent Agents / Q000737:chemistry / Q000378:metabolism*; D015394:Molecular Structure; D013379:Substrate Specificity
chemical_list: D049408:Luminescent Agents; D049454:Firefly Luciferin; D049409:Luciferases, Firefly