Bioluminescence is a phenomenon in nature that attracts us from an esthetic, scientific and useful point of view. One of the sources of natural bioluminescence is some species of fungi that use the luciferin system to emit light from the mycelium, fruiting body, or both. In simple terms, the luciferin system involves the oxidation of a substrate by enzymes that bring the substrate to the first excited state S1, which is not stable. Energy is thus released in the form of light to bring the excited substrate back to the stable state S0. We can use this mechanism in ecotoxicology, as a reporter mechanism, and for other applications. We investigated how the complexity of the substrate affects the emitted light of bioluminescent fungi. For this purpose, we used straw, straw with coffee grounds, beech wood, coconut husks and four different fungal species (Armillaria mellea, Panus conchatus, Panellus serotina, unknown fungal species). We inoculated the substrates with fungi and monitored their luminosity with cameras and sensors in the growth chamber. We also tried varying the temperature in the growth chamber. We made Armillaria mellea to emit light at 10°C and beechwood substrate. We found that for Armillaria mellea the best conditions for the onset of the luciferin cycle are lower temperatures to induce shock and beech wood as substrate.
|
