The news broke this week that the 64-year-old University of California, San Diego, (UCSD) biochemist died on a bike trial in Eugene, Oregon, on August 24, though the cause of his death is still unknown. Tsien earned the 2008 Nobel Prize for Chemistry for his work developing green fluorescent protein into an indispensable tool for labeling proteins, cells, and tissues. He also designed labels in a variety of other colors, including one that fluoresced in the infrared, allowing researchers to see deeper into tissues.
“I’ve always been attracted to colors,” Tsien told the San Diego Union-Tribune in 2008. “Color helps make the work more interesting and endurable. It helps when things aren’t going well. If I had been born color-blind, I probably never would have gone into this.”
A high-profile battle is ongoing between the Broad Institute and the University of California (UC), Berkeley, over who holds the rights to ...
