Two chemists from San Diego, have recently announced their discovery concerning "the most naturally variable protein." Currently it is known in a bacterium that is a key player in the formation of dental plaque. The scientists believe "the extreme variability of the protein discovered in the bacterium Treponema denticola, evolved to adhere to the hundreds of different kinds of other bacteria that inhabit people's mouths.”
They gave the name "Treponema Variable Protein," (or TvpA) to this protein they discovered. They have arrived at the conclusion that it is a million, to a billion times more variable than the proteins playing main roles in vertebrate immune systems.
