Crystal data collection

The X-ray crystallographic techniques for characterizing crystals, data collection, and solving structures of proteins and protein-DNA complexes have been discussed elsewhere in this book. 

Table I. Crystal Data Collection and Refinement Parameters...

Once the crystallographer has a reliable source of suitable crystals, data collection can begin. 

An IP reader has been constructed in Hamburg and is now used routinely on the X-ll and X-31 synchrotron instruments of EMBL for macromolecular crystal data collection. More recently, Rigaku have announced a dual IP scanner system for macromolecular crystallography. 

One of the first virus crystal data collection runs took place on DCI-1 (Usha et al 1984, see section 10.5.1). 

A superconducting wiggler magnet is being installed at DCI. Facilities for macromolecular crystal data collection include Laue diffraction. 

At the various synchrotrons all these geometries have been exploited for macromolecular crystal data collection as they have also on conventional X-ray sources. Once the polychromatic synchrotron X-ray beam has been rendered monochromatic the single crystal data can be measured and processed as for a conventional X-ray source. These standard procedures will be discussed briefly before moving on to cover the synchrotron specific aspects. These latter include SR instrument... 

These preliminary studies culminated in a wealth of activity at SR sources devoted to virus crystal data collection both for structure solving and also drug binding-studies. Table 10.10 gathers the various references to this type of work up to 1990. We now give further details on the rhinovirus work which was done primarily on CHESS after the initial work at Hamburg and Daresbury. This case study will then be followed by a description of the FMDV work done at Daresbury using the SRS. 

The exploitation of this radiation, particularly the brilliance and use of short A s, has made virus crystal data collection routine from difficult samples although it is at present necessary to use hundreds of crystals in the gathering of just one data set. Maybe the use of ultra-short wavelength beams ( =0.33 A) from a harmonic of an undulator could be harnessed to improve the lifetime of one such sample sufficiently to give a complete data set. Much larger macromolecular assemblies are currently under study, such as the ribosome, which possess little or no symmetry (unlike viruses) and are therefore more difficult to solve. 

Crystal Data collection - Diffraction images Measure X-ray diffraction intensities from a crystal... 

Z ) X-Ray Crystallography It is gaining prominence progressively which essentially comprises of three important aspects, namely crystallization, data collection and storage, and computerized data analysis. 

Thanks to Prof. Paul Bernhardt for X-ray crystal data collection and for teaching me all about structure refinement. You became something like a third supervisor during these years. 

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