Experimental evidence for the benefits of higher X-ray energies for macromolecular crystallography

DOI: 10.1107/S2052252521008423

Authors: Selina L. S. Storm (Diamond Light Source) , Danny Axford (Diamond Light Source) , Robin L. Owen (Diamond Light Source)
Co-authored by industrial partner: No

Type: Journal Paper
Journal: Iucrj , VOL 8

State: Published (Approved)
Published: November 2021

Abstract: X-ray-induced radiation damage is a limiting factor for the macromolecular crystallographer and data must often be merged from many crystals to yield complete data sets for the structure solution of challenging samples. Increasing the X-ray energy beyond the typical 10–15 keV range promises to provide an extension of crystal lifetime via an increase in diffraction efficiency. To date, however, hardware limitations have negated any possible gains. Through the first use of a cadmium telluride EIGER2 detector and a beamline optimized for high-energy data collection, it is shown that at higher energies fewer crystals will be required to obtain complete data, as the diffracted intensity per unit dose increases by a factor of more than two between 12.4 and 25 keV. Additionally, these higher energy data can provide more information, as shown by a systematic increase in the high-resolution cutoff of the data collected. Taken together, these gains point to a high-energy future for synchrotron-based macromolecular crystallography.

Journal Keywords: high-energy X-rays; macromolecular crystallography; X-ray radiation damage

Subject Areas: Biology and Bio-materials, Technique Development


Instruments: I24-Microfocus Macromolecular Crystallography

Added On: 19/10/2021 09:54

Documents:
jt5058.pdf

Discipline Tags:

Technique Development - Life Sciences & Biotech Structural biology Life Sciences & Biotech

Technical Tags:

Diffraction Macromolecular Crystallography (MX)