Crystallizing a Protein

Abstract

Students new to the protein X-ray crystallography laboratory may understandably be confused when colleagues discuss Fouriers and Pattersons or molecular replacement and molecular dynamics refinement. However, they understand immediately that the first requirement for protein structure determination is to grow suitable crystals. Without crystals there can be no X-ray structure determination of a protein! In this chapter we discuss the principles of protein crystal growth and as an exercise give the recipe for crystallizing the enzyme lysozyme. We shall also generate an X-ray diffraction picture of a lysozyme crystal. This will provide an introduction to X-ray diffraction. The chapter concludes with a discussion of the problems encountered.