Bioluminescent organisms are a target for many areas of research. Luciferase systems are widely used in the field of genetic engineering as reporter genes. Luciferase systems have also been harnessed for biomedical research using bioluminescence imaging. Vibrio symbiosis with numerous marine invertebrates and fish, namely the Hawaiian Bobtail Squid (Euprymna scolopes), are key experimental models for bioluminescence.
The structures of photophores, the light producing organs in bioluminescent organisms, are being investigated by industrial designers. Engineered bioluminescence could perhaps one day be used to reduce the need for street lighting, or for decorative purposes.[19][20]
The gene that makes fireflies' tails glow has been added to mustard plants. The plants glow faintly for an hour when touched, but a sensitive camera is needed to see the glow.[21]
Undergraduates at the University of Wisconsin–Madison are researching the use of genetically engineered bioluminescent E. coli bacteria, for use as bioluminescent bacteria in a bio bulb.[22]
In June 2013 the Glowing Plant project successfully raised nearly $500,000 on the crowd funding site Kickstarter to create a bioluminescent plant.[23] The project's long term goal is the creation of trees that can be used for street lighting.
Bioluminescent activated destruction is an experimental cancer treatment.[24]