• Question: What colours have you made with cells??:)

    Asked by mcfar7r2 to Kimberley on 14 Jun 2011. This question was also asked by bubblez13, aamarnii98, shineangeline, ebrown.
    • Photo: Kimberley Bryon

      Kimberley Bryon answered on 14 Jun 2011:

      I usually only use red or green although there are lots of different colours that it is possible to use. In order to make cells different colours, I choose a protein that is inside it and pick a colour to make it glow. If I want to see more than one protein I need different colours. So, how do we make cells glow red or green? I use a protein that was found in a jellyfish called green fluorescent protein or GFP

      http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Green_fluorescent_protein

      I take GFP and clone it onto the protein that I want to see, like a tag. Where ever that protein is in the cell, I can see it by using UV light. Quite, cool, don’t you think?

      A really nice award winning picture that shows what I am on about is here:

      http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brainbow

      A scientist made the different neurons in the brain one of four different colours.

      Hope that this answers your question 🙂

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