HW #5 87-90 (16,17,18) Fig(4.4) ,Link Flashcards
1
Q
How can the three dimensional structure of a protein be determined?
A
The experimental technique used to determine the tertiary structure of a protein is X-ray crystallography. Perfect crystals of some proteins can be grown under carefully controlled conditions. When a suitably pure crystal is exposed to a beam of x rays a diffraction pattern is produced when the electrons in each atom in the molecule scatter the x rays. The scattered x rays from the individual atoms can reinforce each other or cancel each other (set up constructive or destructive interference) giving ride to a characteristic pattern for each type of molecule.
