Fluorescent Find

When green fluorescent protein (GFP) was discovered nearly 60 years ago in the jellyfish Aequorea victoria, it transformed biological imaging. Fluorescent proteins (FPs) respond to specific wavelengths of light by emitting light of their own, of a different colour; by tagging proteins of interest with FPs, scientists can track and quantify them inside cells, unlocking a wealth of possibilities. GFP and its different-coloured variants are still in use today, but when scientists snorkelling along Australia’s Great Barrier Reef noticed a jellyfish with an intriguing blue tinge (Aequorea cf. australis, pictured), they decided to investigate. Back in the laboratory, this close relative of A. victoria revealed a series of new FPs, including the brightest one ever found, and even helped researchers identify more FPs inA. victoria too. With a host of possible future uses, these new proteins highlight how much science can still gain from creatures yet to be discovered.

Written by Emmanuelle Briolat

Emmanuelle Briolat

Writer

A researcher specialising in visual signals in Lepidoptera, camouflage and the effects of light pollution, Emmanuelle’s writing covers a range of topics, from biomedical research to children’s books about moth defences.

Website

• Image from work by Gerard G. Lambert and colleagues
• Department of Neurosciences, Center for Research in Biological Systems, University of California San Diego School of Medicine, La Jolla, CA, USA
• Image originally published with a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY 4.0)
• Published in PLOS Biology, November 2020