Three scientists Osamu Shimomura, Martin Chalfie, and Roger Y. Tsien were award the Nobel Prize in Chemistry for discovering and developing a green fluorescent protein (GFP)

Shimomura originally discovered the GFP in a jellyfish, Aquoria victoria, and found that aequorin (the protein) emitted a blue light. So he continued to research because he knew the fluorescence of the jellyfish was green. Eventually he found GFP, which fluoresces green when it absorbs the blue light emitted by aequorin. Chalfie genetically manipulated GFP to create fusion proteins where GFP becomes linked to other proteins. He found that these proteins can be expressed in other organisms such as E. Coli. Tsien showed that the chromophore of GFP only needs oxygen to fluoresce. He then synthesized other GFPs that fluoresce all different colors, shown above, which allows the simultaneous labeling of multiple proteins inside cells.

Collectively, they were awarded the $1.4million prize.

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