Monkey Kidney Cells with mEmerald-PMP
The vervet is of increasing importance as a model species for AIDS research. African green monkeys are natural carriers of simian immunodeficiency virus (SIV), but do not show signs of illness when infected as the Asian macaques do. Caribbean green monkeys do not carry SIV and are the best model for experimental study of the immune response to initial infection. Many laboratories are using this model to determine how the immune system prevents progression of the disease, founding potential implications for the care and prevention of HIV-related diseases in humans. Peroxisomes were visualized in the digital video sequence in this section with mEmerald fused to a peroxisomal membrane protein targeting signal.
The green fluorescent protein mEmerald is a variant of the enhanced Aequorea derivative EGFP. In addition to the S65T and F64L mutations found in EGFP, mEmerald features four additional point mutations, promoting improved brightness and photostability. Excitation and emission of mEmerald peak at 487 and 509 nanometers, respectively.