title: A bright future for bioluminescent imaging in viral research.
abstract: Bioluminescence imaging (BLI) has emerged as a powerful tool in the study of animal models of viral disease. BLI enables real-timein vivostudy of viral infection, host immune response and the efficacy of intervention strategies. Substrate dependent light emitting luciferase enzyme when incorporated into a virus as a reporter gene enables detection of bioluminescence from infected cells using sensitive charge-coupled device (CCD) camera systems. Advantages of BLI include low background, real-time tracking of infection in the same animal and reduction in the requirement for larger animal numbers. Transgenic luciferase-tagged mice enable the use of pre-existing nontagged viruses in BLI studies. Continued development in luciferase reporter genes, substrates, transgenic animals and imaging systems will greatly enhance future BLI strategies in viral research.
authors.affiliation: Health Science Center, Department of Microbial Pathogenesis & Immunology, Texas A&M University, 407 Reynolds Medical Building, College Station, TX 77843-1114, USA.
authors.forename: Stewart M
authors.initials: SM
authors.lastname: Coleman
authors.affiliation: Health Science Center, Department of Microbial Pathogenesis & Immunology, Texas A&M University, 407 Reynolds Medical Building, College Station, TX 77843-1114, USA.
authors.forename: Alistair
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: McGregor
keywords: BLI; CCD camera; bioluminescence imaging; cytomegalovirus; herpes simplex; influenza; luciferase; pathogenesis; viral dissemination; virus imaging