100 Years of X-ray Crystallography. (March 2017)

• Record Type: Journal Article
• Authors: Kemp, Terence J.; Alcock, Nathaniel W.
• Is Part Of: Science progress. Volume 100:Number 1(2017)
• Page Start: 25
• Page End: 44
• Publication Date: 2017-03
• Subjects: bonding -- crystal structure -- data analysis -- DNA -- electron density -- powder diffraction -- ribosome -- symmetry -- synchrotron -- unit cell; Science -- Periodicals; Research; Science; Science; Electronic journals; Periodicals; Periodicals; 505
• DOI: 10.3184/003685017X14858694684395
• Languages: English
• ISSNs: 0036-8504

Abstract

The developments in crystallography, since it was first covered in Science Progress in 1917, following the formulation of the Bragg equation, are described. The advances in instrumentation and data analysis, coupled with the application of computational methods to data analysis, have enabled the solution of molecular structures from the simplest binary systems to the most complex of biological structures. These developments are shown to have had major impacts in the development of chemical bonding theory and in offering an increasing understanding of enzyme–substrate interactions. The advent of synchrotron radiation sources has opened a new chapter in this multi-disciplinary field of science.