Seeing the chemistry in biology using neutron crystallography
New developments in macromolecular neutron crystallography have led to an increasing number of structures published over the last decade. Hydrogen atoms, normally invisible in most X-ray crystal structures, become visible in neutron structures. Using X-rays allows one to see structure, while...
Keywords: macromolecular neutron crystallography, biological macromolecules, neutron
Resource type: video, slides, scientific article
Seeing the chemistry in biology using neutron crystallography
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eL63fo5O-vk
https://pan-training.eu/materials/seeing-the-chemistry-in-biology-using-neutron-crystallography
New developments in macromolecular neutron crystallography have led to an increasing number of structures published over the last decade. Hydrogen atoms, normally invisible in most X-ray crystal structures, become visible in neutron structures. Using X-rays allows one to see structure, while neutrons allow one to reveal the chemistry inherent in these macromolecular structures. A number of surprising and sometimes controversial results have emerged from recent neutron structures; because it is difficult to see or predict hydrogen atoms in X-ray structures, when they are seen by neutrons they can be in unexpected locations with important chemical and biological consequences. Here we describe examples of chemistry seen with neutrons for the first time in biological macromolecules over the past few years.
macromolecular neutron crystallography, biological macromolecules, neutron
