Found glowing fish-like creatures in the dark

As if there were dozens of tiny light bulbs hidden in the body, a fish-like creature emitted fluorescent lights - the ability was previously considered only in corals and jellyfish.

The researchers found these bistable organisms, also called lancelet , which contained green fluorescent proteins that could act as sunshades or support stress, helping to protect it from changes. environment. The findings suggest that fluorescence (different from bioluminescence) may be more common in the animal world than we thought.

Differences between fluorescence and bioluminescence

Although the number of species that can glow in animals is varied, with many different tips, not all of them are considered fluorescence. For example, many deep-sea fish such as viperfish and anglerfish can be bioluminescent - the result of chemical reactions that cause animals to release energy in the form of light.

Another form of glow commonly seen in some minerals is called phosphorescence : the process by which energy is absorbed into matter, and then released slowly in the form of light. In contrast, fluorescence occurs when light is absorbed at one wavelength and then re-emitted at another wavelength almost immediately.

Lancelet species have just been found to be capable of glowing fluorescence.(Photo: LiveScience)

Lancelet species are a unique example of a group of fluorescently capable organisms . Living in coastal areas, this group of creatures bury themselves in the sand and just stick their heads up to make contact with the flowing current.

Dimitri Deheyn from Scripps Institution of Oceanography in La Jolla, California, USA discovered these fluorescent proteins after analyzing samples found in Florida state under blue light (specialized light to trigger phenomena Fluorescent).

These proteins are very similar to those found in corals - groups of organisms that have separated from them for billions of years of evolution. The finding demonstrates that fluorescence is conserved and may have played an important role.

(Photo: LiveScience)

T. An