What is Green Fluorescent Protein (GFP) originally derived from?

Green Fluorescent Protein (GFP) is originally derived from the jellyfish Aequorea victoria. This bioluminescent protein was first discovered in this species, which exhibits a natural ability to fluoresce bright green when exposed to ultraviolet or blue light. The GFP molecule itself contains a chromophore that is formed through a unique post-translational modification, allowing it to absorb light at specific wavelengths and emit light at longer wavelengths, which is the green fluorescence that it is known for.

This property has made GFP a valuable marker in molecular and cellular biology, where it is commonly used as a reporter gene to study gene expression, protein localization, and cellular dynamics. The discovery of GFP has had profound implications in various fields of biological research, leading to numerous applications in genetic engineering, imaging, and live-cell studies.