Bring Out The Sunglasses: Promega's Dual-Luciferase Reporter Assay System

Figure 2. Promega's DLRTM Assay System. As the sun goes down you see the recurring yet sporadic glow of fireflies around you. The flash of the common firefly (Photinus pyralis) is behavioral display at its finest. Flying males flash at intervals of about seven seconds, while nonflying females flash back with a latency of two seconds. Luciferase from the common firefly has been employed as a biological reporter for several years, and recently, Promega (Madison, Wis.) has combined firefly lucife

Written byDeborah Wilkinson

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Figure 2. Promega's DLR^TM Assay System.

As the sun goes down you see the recurring yet sporadic glow of fireflies around you. The flash of the common firefly (Photinus pyralis) is behavioral display at its finest. Flying males flash at intervals of about seven seconds, while nonflying females flash back with a latency of two seconds. Luciferase from the common firefly has been employed as a biological reporter for several years, and recently, Promega (Madison, Wis.) has combined firefly luciferase with luciferase from the sea pansy (Renilla reniformis) in its Dual-Luciferase^TM Reporter (DLR^TM) Assay System, a single-tube, co-reporter system for gene transcription assays. Promega has also developed the Dual-Luciferase Reporter 1000 Assay System, which is configured for use with 96-well microplates and dual-injector luminometers.

In the Dual-Luciferase Reporter Assay System, firefly luciferase activity is used as the "test reporter" to monitor the biological activity of interest. For example, the firefly ...

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