Switchable fluorescent proteins, able to move reversibly between two optical states, have been known from some years. But now, German researchers have discovered the mechanism behind this optical switch in a protein found on the tentacles of a sea anemone. In "A biomolecule as a light switch," they explain they even were able to produce protein crystals which exhibit the same switching characteristics. These cultivated protein crystals might one day lead to new optical data storage devices. As this process is just appearing in the lab, it's too early to tell if such devices will be economically competitive. But even if the idea to use proteins from sea anemonia to build storage devices doesn't translate into commercial products anytime soon, it is at least a very poetic one... Read more...
Sources: Max Planck Society press release, September 29, 2005; and various web sites
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