By Jessica Clark

(Britannica.com) -- A project by Illinois artist Eduardo Kac has broughta common genetic research technique into the realms of art and ethics.The piece, titled "GFP Bunny," centers around Alba, a white rabbit thatglows green when placed under a black light.

To create the effect, Kac had scientists from France's National Instituteof Agronomic Research inject genes derived from the bioluminescentjellyfish Aequorea victoria into a fertilized rabbit egg. Kac intendedto bring Alba home to live with him to demonstrate that genetic hybridsaren't monsters, but the researchers are keeping her for now, disturbedby the protests of animal-rights activists.

The concept behind this luminescent rabbitis nothing new to the biological research community, which has been usinghybrids of the green fluorescent protein (GFP) cloned from the jellyfishfor several years. These complex molecules, enhanced to increase theirglowing properties, can serve as flexible markers to help genetic engineersobserve real-time processes in living tissue.

The sequence that makes up GFP may be introduced into an entire developingorganism, such as a rabbit or a plant; into a particular strain of cells,such as an active cancer; or into a bacteria, such as salmonella. The glowof GFP-laden tissues can be seen under a microscope's ultravioletrays, and black lights can be used to examine the progress of a proteinthrough transparent living organisms like zebrafish.

Variants of GFP that produce cyan, blue, and yellow fluorescence havebeen developed so that researchers can monitor different proteins simultaneously. 

Sept. 27, 2000 / Sources: Encyclop�dia Britannica, Chicago Tribune,ABCNews.com, National Science Foundation, Clontech.com