Definitions
from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.
- noun A protein of the retina, especially the protein constituent of rhodopsin, that makes up one of the visual pigments.
from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.
- noun biochemistry Any of a group of light-sensitive
proteins in theretina
from WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2006 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.
- noun retinal protein formed by the action of light on rhodopsin
Etymologies
from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 4th Edition
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Examples
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The gene, called opsin, is present in vision among vertebrate animals, and is responsible for a different way of seeing than that of animals like flies.
PhysOrg.com - latest science and technology news stories 2010
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Invertebrates have rhabodomeric cells that use a special version of the photopigment called r-opsin, and activate cells by a particular pathway called a phospholipase-C cascade.
PZ Myers - The Deepest Links (on Evolution) William Harryman 2009
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I had a feeling that my Irish in-laws have a long wavelength opsin and special photoreceptors to allow them to see how hot their tea is.
Stupidity Professor in Training 2009
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We vertebrates have ciliary cells, c-opsin, and a phosphodiesterase pathway.
PZ Myers - The Deepest Links (on Evolution) William Harryman 2009
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Genetic evidence for selective transport of opsin and arrestin by kinesin-II in mammalian photoreceptors.
The Edge of Evolution Michael J. Behe 2007
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Genetic evidence for selective transport of opsin and arrestin by kinesin-II in mammalian photoreceptors.
The Edge of Evolution Michael J. Behe 2007
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Our complex eyes clearly evolved from the simpler eyes in ancestral species, and the presence of the critical light-receptive pigment called “opsin” in all animals highlights this shared ancestry.
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Genetic evidence for selective transport of opsin and arrestin by kinesin-II in mammalian photoreceptors.
The Edge of Evolution Michael J. Behe 2007
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Genetic evidence for selective transport of opsin and arrestin by kinesin-II in mammalian photoreceptors.
The Edge of Evolution Michael J. Behe 2007
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Nevertheless in that period, after dissecting retinas from 300 frogs, he found that rhodopsin on stimulation with light yielded both the protein opsin and a compound he called "retinene" (now "retinaldehyde") that in turn yielded vitamin A (now called retinol).
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