Red fluorescent protein (RFP) is a fluorophore that fluoresces red-orange when excited. Several variants have been developed using directed mutagenesis. The original was isolated from Discosoma, and named DsRed. Others are now available that fluoresce orange, red, and far-red. RFP is approximately 25.9 kDa. The excitation maximum is 558 nm, and the emission maximum is 583 nm. The first fluorescent protein to be discovered, green fluorescent protein (GFP), has been adapted to identify and develop fluorescent markers in other colors. Variants such as yellow fluorescent protein (YFP) and cyan fluorescent protein (CFP) were discovered in Anthozoa. Photoactivatable fluorescent proteins (PAFPs) are a type of fluorescent proteins that exhibit fluorescence that can be modified by a light-induced chemical reaction. The first PAFP, Kaede (protein), was isolated from Trachyphyllia geoffroyi in a cDNA library screen designed to identify new fluorescent proteins. Many PAFPs have been engineered from existing fluorescent proteins or identified from large-scale screens in the wake of Kaede's discovery. Many of these undergo green-to-red photoconversion, but other colors are available. Here you can see a recent crystal structure of the photoswitchable red fluorescent protein rsCherry isolated from Discosoma sp (PDB code: 8B65)

#molecularart ... #immolecular ... #fluorescent ... #rscherry ... #photoactivation ... #xray

Structure rendered with @proteinimaging and depicted with @corelphotopaint