AI Insight
Researchers from the University of Liège and Humboldt University Berlin conducted the first individual analysis of visual pigments in mantis shrimp, which possess approximately 30 different visual pigments compared to three in humans. They discovered that some of these pigments can detect red light, a wavelength that very few animal species can perceive, and that these pigments function as reversible light switches. This breakthrough helps explain the remarkably complex visual system of mantis shrimp.
Why it matters
The discovery of these red-sensitive, reversible pigments has potential applications in optogenetics, a field that uses light to control cells in living tissue. Understanding how mantis shrimp pigments work as molecular switches could lead to new tools for controlling biological processes with light.
Understand the Science
With about 30 visual pigments, compared to just three in humans, mantis shrimp possess a visual system that remains a mystery. Researchers from ULiège and Humboldt University in Berlin have, for the first time, analyzed these pigments one by one and discovered that some detect red light that very few animals can perceive. This finding, published in Science Advances, has potential applications in optogenetics.
Source: Red-sensitive pigments in mantis shrimp eyes act as reversible light switches