The present invention relates generally to peptides, polypeptides or proteins having one or more amino acids or one or more amino acid sequences which exhibit color-facilitating properties, either on their own or following interaction with one or more other amino acids and to nucleic acid molecules encoding same. Such peptides, polypeptides and proteins are referred to herein as “color-facilitating molecules” or “CFMs”. The present invention further provides genetic constructs for use in genetically modifying eukaryotic or prokaryotic cells and more particularly eukaryotic tissue so as to alter their visual characteristics or capacity for exhibiting same to a human eye in the absence of excitation by an extraneous non-white light or particle emission. The present invention, therefore, extends to eukaryotic or prokaryotic cells and more particularly eukaryotic tissue, which are genetically modified to produce CFMs and which thereby exhibit altered visual characteristics in the absence of excitation by an extraneous non-white light or particle emission. In one particular embodiment, the CFMs are used to alter the visual characteristics of plants and even more particularly flower color. In another embodiment, the present invention provides gels or coatings or similar biomaterials in the form of a biomatrix comprising the CFMs such as for use as a UV sink, in a sun screen, in cosmetics, as an expression marker or other reporter molecule or for use as a photon trap to increase light intensity.