3-D Structure of Protein Nanocrystals (IMAGE)
Caption
A three-dimensional rendering of X-ray data obtained from over 15,000 single nanocrystal diffraction snapshots recorded at the Linac Coherent Light Source, the world's first hard X-ray free-electron laser, located at SLAC National Accelerator Laboratory. The 3-D structure of proteins -- in this case Photosystem I, the biological factory in plant cells that converts sunlight to energy during photosynthesis -- can be determined from these diffraction patterns. Each nanocrystal was destroyed by the intense X-ray pulse, but not before information about its structure was revealed.
Credit
Thomas White (DESY)
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