| In the pure-cone American chameleon retina, all visual opsins including rod opsin are expressed. |
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| Visual pigments are composed of a light-absorbing chromophore that is bound to the protein opsin. |
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| Every photopigment consists of a derivative of vitamin A linked to a protein molecule called an opsin. |
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| Rhodopsin consists of a protein called opsin bonded to a pigment called retinal. |
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| The transport of opsin to the outer segment of photoreceptor cells seems especially critical for viability of these cells. |
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| Vitamin A then combines with a protein opsin to form rhodopsin. |
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| Five classes of opsin genes encode visual pigments for dim-light and color vision. |
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| The opsin sequences have 364 amino acids divided into six exons separated by five 'neutral' segments or introns. |
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| Arrestin-1 and arrestin-4, termed rod and cone arrestin, are expressed in photoreceptor cells and terminate rhodopsin and cone opsin signaling. |
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| Phototransduction involves a conformational change in the chromophore and activation of an opsin. |
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| The researchers speculate that the eyes' main light-sensing protein, one of many forms of opsin, may also be active in skin as a sensor for light. |
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