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NATURE NEWS UPDATE brain : A new pacemaker protein? SARA ABDULLA US researchers have discovered a new protein in the human eye that may play a key role in setting our biological clocks. The protein is called 'melanopsin' and it seems to be present in parts of the retina -- the light-sensitive double lining of the back of the eyeball -- that are known to connect to the body's primary, so-called 'circadian' pacemaker. Melanopsin had been found before in several vertebrates such as frogs and fish, but this research, reported in the Journal of Neuroscience1 , is the first time that it has been detected in mammals. It is one of a class of proteins called 'opsins', which usually form part of the pigments responsible for light-sensitivity in vision. Melanopsin, however, appears to be different. Full text: http://helix.nature.com/nsu/000127/000127-4.html (from peter.kabai@gmail.com) |
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