Open AccessCurrent state and prospects of macromolecular crystallography
Author(s) -
Dauter Zbigniew
Publication year - 2006
Publication title -
acta crystallographica section d
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
ISSN - 1399-0047
DOI - 10.1107/s0907444905034050
Subject(s) - state (computer science) , field (mathematics) , computer science , structural genomics , data science , current (fluid) , nanotechnology , chemistry , engineering , protein structure , materials science , algorithm , mathematics , biochemistry , pure mathematics , electrical engineering
The current situation and possible future development of macromolecular crystallography are reviewed. The rapid progress and maturation of this field in recent years have to a large extent been made possible by the inspiration and generous support of several active structural genomics initiatives. Two tendencies can be currently observed: one which treats protein crystallography as a highly automatic tool for investigating various biological problems without the need to engage in the intricacies of the technique and a second approach where this method is applied to crystals of difficult, large and complex biological systems, requiring a deeper knowledge of various aspects of crystallography. In the near future it is expected that these two trends will coexist, developing in a parallel fashion.