luciferin

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luciferin

noun luciferins

Any of a class of polycyclic heterocycles that are responsible for the bioluminescence of fireflies, being converted to oxyluciferin by luciferase in the process. Aptly enough, glowworms light up their underworld with a pair of chemicals that have a satanic etymology—luciferins and luciferases, after the Latin for “light bringer.”

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MLA

"luciferin." Wiktionary, via Micwyn, micwyn.com/word/luciferin. Accessed 6 Nov. 2026.

APA

luciferin. (n.d.). In Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Retrieved November 6, 2026, from https://micwyn.com/word/luciferin

Chicago

"luciferin." Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Accessed November 6, 2026. https://micwyn.com/word/luciferin.

BibTeX

@misc{luciferin_2026,
  title = {luciferin},
  howpublished = {Wiktionary, via Micwyn},
  year = {2026},
  url = {https://micwyn.com/word/luciferin},
  urldate = {2026-11-06}
}