Luminometer
Luminometer - Related Videos
03:23
Measurement of the In Vivo Burden of Bacteria Expressing Luciferase in an Insect Larva
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2025
This video showcases the in vivo bacterial burden measurement using Bacillus Calmette-Guérin, BCG, lux-infected insect larvae. The process involves larval homogenization, treatment with a luciferase substrate, and bioluminescence measurement to determine relative light units that correlate with bacterial burden.
02:52
Real-Time Monitoring of Odorant Receptor Activation in Recombinant Cells
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2025
Source: de March, C. A. et. al., Real-time In Vitro Monitoring of Odorant Receptor Activation by an Odorant in the Vapor Phase. J. Vis. Exp. (2019)This video demonstrates the method to monitor the real-time activation of odorant receptors in recombinant mammalian cells using luminescence measurement. Odorant binding triggers G-protein activation and cAMP production, activating glosensor proteins that emit luminescence upon substrate binding, providing a quantitative measure of receptor response.
04:06
Preparation and Quantification of Mycobacterium bovis BCG lux Inoculum for Infection
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2025
This video demonstrates the preparation and quantification of Mycobacterium bovis Bacillus Calmette-Guérin lux inoculum using bioluminescence assay and the enumeration of colony-forming units. The prepared inoculum can be used for infection studies.
02:36
The Luciferase Assay: A High-Throughput Assay to Measure Luminescent Signals Using Engineered Nanoluciferase System-Based Bioreporters
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2025
The video demonstrates the luciferase assay used to quantify luciferase-tagged proteins. The assay uses an engineered luciferase enzyme composed of a large fragment that binds with the small fragment, which is conjugated with a protein of interest. The bound subunits form an active enzyme that, in the presence of the substrate, releases a luminescent signal. This signal is then quantified using a luminometer.
08:10
A Functional Whole Blood Assay to Measure Viability of Mycobacteria, using Reporter-Gene Tagged BCG or M.Tb (BCG lux/M.Tb lux)
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Cited by 19 •
2011
We describe an alternative approach to the enumeration of mycobacteria in vitro, which uses reporter-gene tagged mycobacteria instead of colony-forming units (CFU). “Survival” of organisms as well as host response-markers are measured simultaneously, providing a low-cost, versatile and functional system for studies of host/pathogen interactions in the context of tuberculosis.
FAQs
A luminometer’s photodetector converts photons emitted by the assay into an electrical signal, which the instrument records as light output. The measured signal can be expressed relatively or absolutely, depending on the assay’s reporting approach. This conversion allows reaction-generated light to serve as a quantitative readout of biological or chemical activity.
Bioluminescent and chemiluminescent assays differ in the source of the emitted light, although both can be measured with the same instrument. In biology, that distinction helps connect the readout to the assay design: light may arise from a biological reaction or from a chemical reaction used to detect a target. The luminometer quantifies either signal.
Relative light output is useful for comparing signals within an experiment, whereas absolute light output reports the measured intensity on an absolute basis. The choice affects how results are presented and interpreted, but in both cases the central link remains the same: greater or lesser recorded light is used to evaluate the associated reaction or cellular activity.
A typical measurement begins with a sample prepared so that a luminescent reaction can occur. The resulting light reaches the instrument’s photodetector, which converts photons into an electrical signal for recording. Researchers then use the recorded output to quantify the reaction or cellular activity represented by the assay, such as enzyme activity, ATP-related signal, or reporter signal.
Researchers apply luminometers to ATP detection, enzyme activity measurements, and cell viability assays because these formats translate biological status into measurable light output. The resulting values can support comparisons of cellular activity or reaction performance. In biology, this makes the instrument useful for studying metabolism and toxicity, where changes in activity are experimentally important.
Luciferase-based reporter assays use emitted light to investigate gene expression. A reporter signal can therefore connect luminometer readings with changes in biological regulation, while related applications extend to signaling, metabolism, and toxicity studies. This approach is valuable when researchers need a quantitative readout of a cellular process rather than only a descriptive observation.