Table 1 Glossary
From: Sea as a color palette: the ecology and evolution of fluorescence
Term | Definition |
|---|---|
Aequorin | Calcium-activated photoprotein complex responsible for luminescence in the jellyfish Aequorea victoria |
Carotenoids | Yellow, orange, and red organic pigments produced by plants, algae, bacteria and fungi |
Chlorophyll | Green organic pigment present in plants and in cyanobacteria, which is responsible for light absorption during photosynthesis and dissipates its energy by emission as fluorescence radiation |
Chromatophore | Pigment-containing cell in the superficial skin tissue layer of an animal |
Exitance | Totality of light leaving the surface expressed in energy or photon flux units |
Fluorescence | Emission of light at a longer wavelength, in other words it is the absorption of shorter-wavelength light (excitation) followed by the release of a part of the absorbed energy at a longer wavelength (emission) |
Fluorophore/ Chromophore | Part of a molecule or chemical group composed of an atom or a group of atoms responsible for the color emitted by a fluorescent protein |
Green fluorescent protein (GFP) | Protein able to emit green fluorescence in the presence of short-wavelength light discovered in Aequorea victoria |
Light absorption | Phenomenon occurring when a ray of light strikes a surface. The energy from the light (photons) is transferred to the surface material |
Light scattering | Phenomenon occurring when a ray of light strikes a surface and changes its direction |
Luminescence | Light generated by an enzymatic reaction (luciferase) within a living organism |
Phosphorescence | Type of photoluminescence related to fluorescence displaying gradual light emission over a long period of time |
Photophore | Gland or organ specialized in the production of luminescent light |
Photoactivatable fluorescent proteins (PAFPs) | Class of FP capable of acute changes in their spectral properties upon irradiation with light of a specific wavelength and intensity |
Pigment | Colored chemical substance found in animals or plants capable of changing color after reflection and absorption of certain wavelengths of visible light |
Quenching Reflectance | Process of stopping a chemical or enzymatic reaction Fraction of photons reflected at each wavelength |
Sandercyanin | Lipocalin family protein, isolated from a freshwater fish, able to bind to biliverdin IXα displaying blue color naturally, or red fluorescence under UV radiation |
UnaG | Fatty acid binding protein (FABP), isolated from marine eels, able to bind endogenous bilirubin triggering green fluorescence |