TEMPORAL SHIFTS IN BIOLUMINESCENCE EMISSION SPECTRA FROM THE DEEP-SEA FISH, Searsia koefoedi

Abstract— The luminescence of freshly collected exudate from the post-cleithral organ of the deep-sea searsiid fish. Searsia koefoedi , was increased in intensity by the addition of hydrogen peroxide and exhibited emission maxima at 408 nm and 478 nm. Initially, the spectrum was unimodal with a long wavelength peak and a short wavelength shoulder. With time, the short wavelength peak increased in relative magnitude; the spectrum became bimodal, then the short wavelength peak predominated. The measured time-dependent changes in the spectral distribution resulted from differences in the rates of decay of the two peaks. The short wavelength peak exhibited first order exponential decay with a mean (± standard deviation) decay constant of -0.13 ± 0.02 min^-1 ( N = 4). Decay of the long wavelength peak proceeded approximately twice as fast and was best defined by a double exponential function.