JOURNAL
OF BIOLUMINESCENCE AND CHEMILUMINESCENCE VOL 6 137-138 (1991)
Research on Bio- and Chemiluminescence in the Soviet Union N. N. Ugarova Chemistry Department, M. V. Lomonsov Moscow University, 119899, Moscow, USSR
Research on chemiluminescence in living systems and chemical processes has a long-standing tradition in the Soviet Union. As early as 1923, Professor A. Gurvich discovered a weak UV radiation in cells, yeasts, and other biological objects. This radiation stimulated cell mitosis and therefore was termed ‘mitogenetic’. Mitogenetic radiation was related to the e:.istence of unstable structures, a necessary condition of mitosis, which caused morphological changes in cells. The source of this UV radiation has not been ascertained but it may result from recombination of free radicals formed during enzymatic converson of substrates in the cell. An impetus to studies on chemiluminescence in the 1950s was the availability of laboratory designed photoelectron multipliers. In 1961 Professor B. Tarusov. Moscow University, detected a sotermed ‘superweak’ light in the visible spectrum in animal and vegetable cells which resulted from the free-radical oxidation of cell membrane lipids or from recombination of free radicals produced in the enzymatic oxidation of substrates. The intensity of spontaneous radiation of cells was shown to correlate with physiological processes in cell membranes. This formed the basis of a chemiluminescent test to explore oxidative phosphorylation and stress conditions and to monitor cell viability, and to estimate efficiency of anti-tumour, and anti-radiation agents. Yu. Vladimirov used a luminol-iron salt system for detection of lipid hydroperoxides in membranes and this improved the sensitivity of the method. Currently the weak chemiluminescence of cells have attracted the attention of many scientists in medicine and biology, notably the laboratories headed by Dr A. Zhuravliov and Professor Yu. Vladimirov. 0884-3996/91/0200137-02$05.00 $3 1991 by John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Chemiluminescent methods proved to be useful for studying the kinetics and mechanism of liquidphase oxidation of organic substances. As early as the 1950s in the laboratory of Professor N. Emanuel (Institute for Chemical Physics, USSR Academy of Sciences) the exploration of spectral and temporal parameters of chemiluminescence led to quantitative data on rate constants for free radicals in chain oxidation processes and on the mechanism of initiated and inhibited oxidation. At present, one of the leading centres in the mechanistic study of liquid-phase chemiluminescence is the laboratory headed by Professor R. Vasiliev. His group has elucidated the mechanisms of some intricate chemiluminescent reactions, the chemical generation of the excited products involving ion-radicals, as well as having established their generality with excitation processes in electrochemical systems. More recently several new centres have been founded in the USSR to study liquid-phase chemiluminescence. The Chemistry Institute (Ufa) has been studying the pathways of energy migration and of inactivation of excited states of molecules and ions, and the intermediates of chemiluminescent electrochemical reactions, as well as the chemiluminescent processes involving metal-organic compounds, singlet oxygen and dioxetanes. Low-temperature chemiluminescence in frozen matrices has also been studied. In the 1970s lyoluminescence of alkali halide crystals and organic substances upon their dissolution in water and aqueous solutions of luminophores was characterized. It was shown that this phenomenon could be used for dosimetry of ionizing radiation, for monitoring admixtures in water, and for detection of defects in solids. Received 20 February 1989 Revised 25 July 1990
138
In the 1960s, the laboratory of Professor A. Babko (Kiev) became a centre for chemiluminescent assay. Here they studied the kinetics and mechanism of chemiluminescent oxidation of luminol and lucigenin in the presence of transition metal ions, as well as designing methods for the chemiluminescent assay of these ions with a detection limit of 1 ng. As early as 1962, Professor Babko developed a photographic method to detect chemiluminescent reactions. At present, chemiluminescent processes involving luminol and acridine esters are under study in the USSR Academy of Sciences and at Moscow University. Enhanced chemiluminescence is under active investigation in the laboratory headed by Dr A. Egorov. Homogeneous chemiluminescent immunoassays using modulators of peroxidase activity and various flow injection methods have been designed. Research on bioluminescence and on the structure and functions of luciferases started in the 1970s in Krasnoyarsk (Biophysics Institute, Laboratory of Professor I. Gitelson) and in Moscow University (Laboratories of N. Ugarova and V. Danilov). However, as early as the 1960s, a large collection of
N. N. UGAROVA
luminescent bacteria was made in Krasnoyarsk. This collection has been constantly supplemented and studied with the purpose of optimizing the culture conditions and elucidating morphological and phylogenetic features of these microorganisms. In Moscow and Krasnoyarsk, purified preparations of bacterial luciferase from various sources were obtained and their biochemical and kinetic features explored. Methods for luciferase immobilization and bioluminescent assays were also developed. Research with firefly luciferase from the Caucasus species Luciola mingrelica was initiated by Professor I. Berezin. This work included fundamental studies of structure and functions of firefly luciferase, regulation mechanisms of its enzymatic activity, elaboration of bioluminescent reagents for microassay, and development of assay procedures, e.g., ATP labels in bioluminescent immunoassays of insulin and antibodies to insulin. Recently Moscow University and the Krasnoyarsk Biophysics Institute have embarked on research into the genetic engineering of bacterial and firefly luciferases.
OF BIOLUMINESCENCE AND CHEMILUMINESCENCE VOL 6 137-138 (1991)
Research on Bio- and Chemiluminescence in the Soviet Union N. N. Ugarova Chemistry Department, M. V. Lomonsov Moscow University, 119899, Moscow, USSR
Research on chemiluminescence in living systems and chemical processes has a long-standing tradition in the Soviet Union. As early as 1923, Professor A. Gurvich discovered a weak UV radiation in cells, yeasts, and other biological objects. This radiation stimulated cell mitosis and therefore was termed ‘mitogenetic’. Mitogenetic radiation was related to the e:.istence of unstable structures, a necessary condition of mitosis, which caused morphological changes in cells. The source of this UV radiation has not been ascertained but it may result from recombination of free radicals formed during enzymatic converson of substrates in the cell. An impetus to studies on chemiluminescence in the 1950s was the availability of laboratory designed photoelectron multipliers. In 1961 Professor B. Tarusov. Moscow University, detected a sotermed ‘superweak’ light in the visible spectrum in animal and vegetable cells which resulted from the free-radical oxidation of cell membrane lipids or from recombination of free radicals produced in the enzymatic oxidation of substrates. The intensity of spontaneous radiation of cells was shown to correlate with physiological processes in cell membranes. This formed the basis of a chemiluminescent test to explore oxidative phosphorylation and stress conditions and to monitor cell viability, and to estimate efficiency of anti-tumour, and anti-radiation agents. Yu. Vladimirov used a luminol-iron salt system for detection of lipid hydroperoxides in membranes and this improved the sensitivity of the method. Currently the weak chemiluminescence of cells have attracted the attention of many scientists in medicine and biology, notably the laboratories headed by Dr A. Zhuravliov and Professor Yu. Vladimirov. 0884-3996/91/0200137-02$05.00 $3 1991 by John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.
Chemiluminescent methods proved to be useful for studying the kinetics and mechanism of liquidphase oxidation of organic substances. As early as the 1950s in the laboratory of Professor N. Emanuel (Institute for Chemical Physics, USSR Academy of Sciences) the exploration of spectral and temporal parameters of chemiluminescence led to quantitative data on rate constants for free radicals in chain oxidation processes and on the mechanism of initiated and inhibited oxidation. At present, one of the leading centres in the mechanistic study of liquid-phase chemiluminescence is the laboratory headed by Professor R. Vasiliev. His group has elucidated the mechanisms of some intricate chemiluminescent reactions, the chemical generation of the excited products involving ion-radicals, as well as having established their generality with excitation processes in electrochemical systems. More recently several new centres have been founded in the USSR to study liquid-phase chemiluminescence. The Chemistry Institute (Ufa) has been studying the pathways of energy migration and of inactivation of excited states of molecules and ions, and the intermediates of chemiluminescent electrochemical reactions, as well as the chemiluminescent processes involving metal-organic compounds, singlet oxygen and dioxetanes. Low-temperature chemiluminescence in frozen matrices has also been studied. In the 1970s lyoluminescence of alkali halide crystals and organic substances upon their dissolution in water and aqueous solutions of luminophores was characterized. It was shown that this phenomenon could be used for dosimetry of ionizing radiation, for monitoring admixtures in water, and for detection of defects in solids. Received 20 February 1989 Revised 25 July 1990
138
In the 1960s, the laboratory of Professor A. Babko (Kiev) became a centre for chemiluminescent assay. Here they studied the kinetics and mechanism of chemiluminescent oxidation of luminol and lucigenin in the presence of transition metal ions, as well as designing methods for the chemiluminescent assay of these ions with a detection limit of 1 ng. As early as 1962, Professor Babko developed a photographic method to detect chemiluminescent reactions. At present, chemiluminescent processes involving luminol and acridine esters are under study in the USSR Academy of Sciences and at Moscow University. Enhanced chemiluminescence is under active investigation in the laboratory headed by Dr A. Egorov. Homogeneous chemiluminescent immunoassays using modulators of peroxidase activity and various flow injection methods have been designed. Research on bioluminescence and on the structure and functions of luciferases started in the 1970s in Krasnoyarsk (Biophysics Institute, Laboratory of Professor I. Gitelson) and in Moscow University (Laboratories of N. Ugarova and V. Danilov). However, as early as the 1960s, a large collection of
N. N. UGAROVA
luminescent bacteria was made in Krasnoyarsk. This collection has been constantly supplemented and studied with the purpose of optimizing the culture conditions and elucidating morphological and phylogenetic features of these microorganisms. In Moscow and Krasnoyarsk, purified preparations of bacterial luciferase from various sources were obtained and their biochemical and kinetic features explored. Methods for luciferase immobilization and bioluminescent assays were also developed. Research with firefly luciferase from the Caucasus species Luciola mingrelica was initiated by Professor I. Berezin. This work included fundamental studies of structure and functions of firefly luciferase, regulation mechanisms of its enzymatic activity, elaboration of bioluminescent reagents for microassay, and development of assay procedures, e.g., ATP labels in bioluminescent immunoassays of insulin and antibodies to insulin. Recently Moscow University and the Krasnoyarsk Biophysics Institute have embarked on research into the genetic engineering of bacterial and firefly luciferases.
