1. Luminescent Probes and Visualization of Bioluminescence -- 2. Validation of Bioluminescent Imaging Techniques -- 3. Assessment of Extracellular ATP Concentrations -- 4. High-Throughput Quantitative Bioluminescence Imaging for Assessing Tumor Burden -- 5. Fluorescence Imaging of Tumors with "Smart" pH-Activatable Targeted Probes -- 6. Imaging Vasculature and Lymphatic Flow in Mice Using Quantum Dots -- 7. Bioluminescent Imaging of Transplanted Islets -- 8. Bioluminescence Reporter Gene Imaging of Human Embryonic Stem Cell Survival, Proliferation, and Fate -- 9. Detection of Apoptosis Using Cyclic Luciferase in Living Mammals -- 10. Noninvasive Bioluminescent Imaging of Infections -- 11. Real-Time Bioluminescence Imaging of Viral Pathogenesis -- 12. Bioluminescent Monitoring of In Vivo Colonization and Clearance Dynamics by Light-Emitting Bacteria -- 13. Quantitative In Vivo Imaging of Non-viral-Mediated Gene Expression and RNAi-Mediated Knockdown -- 14. Analysis of Protein-Protein Interactions Using Bioluminescence Resonance Energy Transfer -- 15. Bioluminescent Imaging of MAPK Function with Intein-Mediated Reporter Gene Assay -- 16. Bioluminescence Analysis of Smad-Dependent TGF-? Signaling in Live Mice -- 17. Bioluminescence Imaging of Calcium Oscillations Inside Intracellular Organelles -- 18. Novel Tools for Use in Bioluminescence Resonance Energy Transfer (BRET) Assays -- 19. PIN-G Reporter for Imaging and Defining Trafficking Signals in Membrane Proteins -- 20. Imaging ?-Galactosidase Activity In Vivo Using Sequential Reporter-Enzyme Luminescence.

Through the study and application of bioluminescence, scientists have painstakingly harnessed a powerful tool that enables us to seek a deeper understanding of the complex mechanisms underpinning so many vital biologic systems. In this fully revised and updated second edition of Bioluminescence: Methods and Protocols, expert researchers contribute a readable and utilitarian compilation of the newest and most innovative techniques that have emerged in this rapidly expanding and progressively diverse field including methods to assess cell trafficking, protein-protein interactions, intracellular signaling, and apoptosis. Also opening up the possibility to visualize and quantify biological mechanisms in real-time and in in vivo settings, the volume also describes the in vivo study of bacterial or viral infections, transplanted cells, stem cells proliferation, vascular flow, and tumors. Written in the highly successful Methods in Molecular Biology™ series format, chapters include brief introductions to their respective topics, lists of the necessary materials, equipment, and reagents, step-by-step, readily reproducible laboratory protocols, and notes on troubleshooting and avoiding known pitfalls. Authoritative and cutting-edge, Bioluminescence: Methods and Protocols, Second Edition provides protocols that are detailed enough to be followed and adapted by scientific teams who have no previous expertise in bioluminescence in order to foster the potentially numerous breakthroughs and new applications from basic to applied science and medicine that must continue to be developed.