ABSTRACT
One of the most important advances in the fields of biochemistry and medicine has been the development of the field of structural biology and biochemistry. The use of X-ray bombardment on crystals of molecules and the analysis of structures by the diffraction patterns they generated was developed before its use in biochemistry. Hemoglobin was one of the first proteins to be crystallized and to have its structure solved. A researcher tries a range of conditions when growing crystals. Max Perutz's technique was soon used to solve structures of many proteins, then helped reveal the structures of DNA and RNA. Many proteins are robust enough to withstand the charge-concentrated ions, though, which allows for their use as precipitants in crystal-growth work. After setting up conditions within multiple reservoirs for crystals to grow, the researcher must wait while osmosis begins the process of increasing the precipitant concentration. Larger drops and larger crystals can be grown using the “Sitting Drop” method.
