Choosing a Reporter Assay that Fits Your Research

We developed the first commercially available luciferase assay reagents in 1991. Since then, our scientists have continued engineering bioluminescent reporter technologies. Today this work spans genetic reporter assays, protein interaction studies, target engagement and live-cell imaging. We offer three distinct luciferase reporters (NanoLuc, firefly, Renilla) that are each engineered with different size, brightness and substrate properties to match specific experimental designs.

What's Your Bottleneck?

Before comparing reporters, consider what matters most for your specific research. Once you've identified your primary need, use the comparison tables below to narrow down your options.

• Need the brightest signal for sensitive detection?
  NanoLuc® luciferase, a 19kDa enzyme, is approximately 100-fold brighter than firefly or Renilla at equivalent expression levels when maximum sensitivity is needed for low-expression targets or limited samples.


• Running high-throughput screening and prefer speed over sensitivity?
  NanoLuc® and Firefly luciferase with homogenous "add-and-read" reagents (Nano-Glo, Bright-Glo, ONE-Glo) eliminate separate lysis steps and are designed for high-throughput, plate-based workflows.


• Want to normalize reporter data with an internal control?
  Dual-reporter formats, such as pairing a firefly experimental reporter with Renilla or NanoLuc provide in-well options for a normalization control. These comprise the standard approach for transcriptional studies where transfection efficiency must be controlled.


• Measuring dynamic changes over hours or days?
  Live-cell substrates (Endurazine, Vivazine, EnduRen) enable non-lytic, kinetic measurements from the same cell population over hours to days for time-course and longitudinal experiments.