Definition of "luciferin"

luciferin

noun
plural luciferins
1. (biochemistry) Any of a class of polycyclic heterocycles that are responsible for the bioluminescence of fireflies, being converted to oxyluciferin by luciferase in the process.
  Quotations
  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.”
  2017 October 6, Ed Yong, “The Most Beautiful Death Trap”, in The Atlantic‎