title: Systematic improvement of protein crystals by determining the supersolubility curves of phase diagrams.
abstract: A systematic approach for improving protein crystals by growing them in the metastable zone using the vapor diffusion technique is described. This is a simple technique for optimization of crystallization conditions. Screening around known conditions is performed to establish a working phase diagram for the crystallization of the protein. Dilutions of the crystallization drops across the supersolubility curve into the metastable zone are then carried out as follows: the coverslips holding the hanging drops are transferred, after being incubated for some time at conditions normally giving many small crystals, over reservoirs at concentrations which normally yield clear drops. Fewer, much larger crystals are obtained when the incubation times are optimized, compared with conventional crystallization at similar conditions. This systematic approach has led to the structure determination of the light-harvesting protein C-phycocyanin to the highest-ever resolution of 1.45 A.
authors.affiliation: Biological Structure and Function Section, Division of Biomedical Sciences, Faculty of Medicine, Sir Alexander Fleming Building, Imperial College London, London SW7 2AZ, United Kingdom.
authors.forename: Emmanuel
authors.initials: E
authors.lastname: Saridakis
authors.forename: Naomi E
authors.initials: NE
authors.lastname: Chayen
mesh_terms: D003460:Crystallization / Q000379:methods*; D003461:Crystallography / Q000379:methods*; D010798:Phycocyanin / Q000737:chemistry; D011487:Protein Conformation; D011506:Proteins / Q000138:chemical synthesis / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000302:isolation & purification*; D011786:Quality Control; D012995:Solubility; D014357:Trypsin / Q000737:chemistry
chemical_list: D011506:Proteins; D010798:Phycocyanin; D014357:Trypsin