The green revolution

Wiley–Liss, 1998. £38.95 (385 pages)ISBN 0 471 17839 XGreen-fluorescent protein (GFP) has emerged into the limelight of modern biology. This protein was discovered to be responsible for the emission of green light in Aequorea victoria, a Pacific hydromedusea. It has evolved into a refined tool for today’s biological research. Application of GFP has the potential to enhance our understanding of dynamic biological processes such as cell division and migration. Martin Chalfie and Steven Kain, both involved in the shaping of GFP into a biological tool, assembled the story of the discovery, cloning and application of this chromophore-bearing protein.Green Fluorescent Protein tells the story of the discovery of Aequorea victoria GFP, describes its homologies to GFPs derived from other species and contains precise biochemical and structural data to understand the spectroscopic differences between various mutant GFPs. Furthermore, several different model systems are described in which GFP has been successfully applied. These experimental models range from plants, bacteria and yeast to transgenic vertebrate and mammalian cells and cover biological issues as diverse as population dynamics, gene promoter activity, measuring of cytoplasmic Ca2+, localization of individual cells in a living organism or tracking the dynamic behaviour of GFP-tagged proteins in a cell. Even researchers who already use GFP and its spectral variants in their daily routine might enjoy reading about its discovery in a Pacific hydromedusea and about the numerous uses of GFP in other biological systems. In each biological system discussed, inherent and encountered problems that could affect the use of GFP are very well explained. Furthermore, technical solutions are provided to improve the results obtained when using GFP, and its use is compared with standard techniques of labelling proteins, cells or organisms. A strength of this book is that it reveals pitfalls and artifacts that have been encountered in the daily use of GFP. This information and the various tables about the properties and composition of GFP-based vectors and fusion constructs make this book a very helpful reference for all future experiments involving GFP.The protocols provided in the last section of the book contain straightforward answers on how to obtain GFP expression in various organisms, either as a soluble fluorescent marker or as a fusion protein localized to a specific cellular compartment. In addition to information about GFP, this last section of the book also provides information about the various microscope and filter sets that are used to observe GFP alone or in combination with a different spectral variant. Various techniques for which the unique fluorescent properties of GFP can be used are clearly explained and range from time-lapse studies, fluorescence-activated cell sorting (FACS), fluorescence resonance energy transfer (FRET), fluorescence recovery or fluorescence loss after/in photobleaching (FRAP and FLIP, respectively) to confocal and two-photon excitation microscopy.In conclusion, this book is the first to discuss the properties and potential uses of GFP protein in various dynamic biological systems. It provides valuable information to all who work or intend to work with GFP. Unfortunately, although the book provides detailed descriptions of protocols and applications, there is no room left to display any results obtained by the use of GFP. Although some colour plates are shown in the middle of the book, one cannot appreciate (only guess) why GFP is such a fascinating new experimental tool that will help to study, visualize and understand the complexities of biological processes. At the end of the book, only a modest list of Web sites guide to additional visual stimulation necessary to capture the essence of the living world visualized by GFP. Therefore, this book has only a limited value as a teaching aid and it needs to be backed up by visual information, for example, in the form of a CD-ROM (e.g. GFP in Motion, Ludin and Matus, 1999, available from trends in CELL BIOLOGY) in order to understand that GFP gives us the opportunity to monitor hitherto hidden complex biological processes that might revolutionize modern biology.