Synthesis of Recombinant Mouse Crystallin Proteins and in Vitro Measurement of Their Refractivity

The eye lens is an organ that focuses light onto the retina and is reported to have a high refractive index in vertebrates. An analysis of refractivity was conducted using recombinant mouse Crystallin proteins produced in Escherichia coli (E. coli) compared with bovine serum albumin (BSA) and other commercially available proteins. Not only did we measure the refractivity but for one of the crystallins, Cryba1, we also confirmed that it responds uniquely to its environmental conditions. The crystallin showed high refractivity, as expected, and we confirmed that the electrical charge of the Cryba1 molecule influences its refractivity.