(CNN)-- Research into the mysterious green glow of a jellyfish earned three scientists ... the discovery and development of the green fluorescent protein GFP. Each will take a third of the prize.

In 79 AD, Pliny recorded the first human use of bioluminescence as a kind of torch, by rubbing a stick against jellyfish slime ... the development of green fluorescent protein (GFP) as one ...

They called it “green protein,” but at the time ... Although the bacteria were green, the GFP took a long time to fold and become fluorescent. “The jellyfish version of GFP just crashed out in E. coli ...

The many-ribbed jellyfish ... ability to glow green. Some species of crystal jelly produce bioluminescence to startle potential predators. This light is created by a special protein, which ...

At the center of his work is the jellyfish and coral reefs which he discovered produces the Green Fluorescent Protein. UCSD has a large student body in both the graduate and undergraduate programs.