Previous approaches used luciferases from bacteria, but the molecular products were toxic to the plants.
Notably, this is not the first time scientists have made glow-in-the-dark plants. By engineering the glow-in-the-dark mushroom genes into a plant, scientists can create bioluminescent plants. Luciferases are found in a number of different bioluminescent organisms (creatures that produce light), such as fireflies, plankton, and jellyfish.
Using a type of molecular machine called a luciferase enzyme, the fungus emits light as a byproduct of its metabolism. The research harnesses the ability for the mushroom Neonothopanus nambi to light up the night in its native Brazillian forests. Using four genes that make a fungus glow-in-the-dark, a team of international scientists has engineered tobacco plants that emit green light, sparking whimsical imaginings for our future. Now, with the help of a mushroom, perhaps someday the trees themselves may light our way. From torches to halogen street lamps, we have been finding ways to illuminate the night for millennia.
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