Harnessing Bioluminescence: A Comprehensive Review of In Vivo Imaging for Disease Monitoring and Therapeutic Intervention

ABSTRACT The technique of using naturally occurring light‐emitting reactants (photoproteins and luciferases] that have been extracted from a wide range of animals is known as bioluminescence imaging, or BLI. This imaging offers important details on the location and functional state of regenerative cells inserted into various disease‐modeling animals. Reports on gene expression patterns, cell motions, and even the actions of individual biomolecules in whole tissues and live animals have all been made possible by bioluminescence. Generally speaking, bioluminescent light in animals may be found down to a few centimetres, while the precise limit depends on the signal's brightness and the detector's sensitivity. We can now spatiotemporally visualize cell behaviors in any body region of a living animal in a time frame process, including proliferation, apoptosis, migration, and immunological responses, thanks to BLI. The biological applications of in vivo BLI in nondestructively monitoring biological processes in intact small animal models are reviewed in this work, along with some of the advancements that will make BLI a more versatile molecular imaging tool. Summary This study reviews the application of bioluminescence imaging (BLI) using natural light‐emitting reactants from various animals to non‐destructively monitor biological processes in live small animal models. By enabling the visualization of gene expression, cell movements, and individual biomolecular actions in real‐time, BLI provides critical insights into the behavior of regenerative cells in disease models. This research highlights advancements that enhance BLI's versatility as a molecular imaging tool, which can significantly impact future studies in cell biology, disease progression, and therapeutic interventions. The ability to spatiotemporally track cellular behaviors in vivo represents a powerful approach for advancing our understanding of complex biological systems.