Luminescence is the emission of light by an object. Living organisms including certain bacteria are capable of luminescence (bioluminescence). Bacteria are the most abundant luminescent organism in nature.

Bacterial luminescence has been studied most extensively in several marine bacteria (e.g., Vibrio harveyi, Vibrio fischeri, Photobacterium phosphoreum, Photobacterium leiognathi), and in Xenorhabdus luminescens, a bacteria that lives on land. The precise molecular mechanisms of luminescence differ between these bacteria. But, the general scheme of the process is similar.

In luminescent bacteria (and other luminescent organisms as well) this general scheme involves an enzyme that is dubbed luciferase. A suite of genes dubbed lux genes code for the enzyme and other components of the luminescent system. The different bacteria are dissimilar in the sequence of their lux genes and in the enzyme reactions that produce luminescence. However, the general pattern of the reaction is the same.

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