Mad Easter Bunny Science!
Wacky, self-purported "gene-artist" scientist genetically alters white-rabbit to glow flourescent green when "charged" with a special blue light!
Extensive documentation can be found at his website.
Eduardo Kac, the scientist behind his flourescent pet's creation, casually explains how he grafted jellyfish DNA into a white rabbit to get the interesting phosphorescent effect.
The scientist expresses his feelings for his unusual pet (from website), "I will never forget the moment when I first held her in my arms, in Jouy-en-Josas, France, on April 29, 2000. My apprehensive anticipation was replaced by joy and excitement. Alba -- the name given her by my wife, my daughter, and I -- was lovable and affectionate and an absolute delight to play with. As I cradled her, she playfully tucked her head between my body and my left arm, finding at last a comfortable position to rest and enjoy my gentle strokes. She immediately awoke in me a strong and urgent sense of responsibility for her well-being."
The scientist further explains, " "Alba", the green fluorescent bunny, is an albino rabbit. This means that, since she has no skin pigment, under ordinary environmental conditions she is completely white with pink eyes. Alba is not green all the time. She only glows when illuminated with the correct light. When (and only when) illuminated with blue light (maximum excitation at 488 nm), she glows with a bright green light (maximum emission at 509 nm). She was created with EGFP, an enhanced version (i.e., a synthetic mutation) of the original wild-type green fluorescent gene found in the jellyfish Aequorea Victoria. EGFP gives about two orders of magnitude greater fluorescence in mammalian cells (including human cells) than the original jellyfish gene."
The gene scientist has also provided a webpage of all the various news articles he's been listed in from around the globe.
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