Illuminating the Secrets of Crystals - Microcrystal Electron Diffraction in Structural Biology

An exploration of the crystallographic theory of the relatively novel method of Microcrystal Electron Diffraction (MicroED), via comparison to X-ray crystallography at the theoretical and practical level as it applies to biological macromolecules. We then attempt to outline the limitations and challenges that the technique currently faces in structural biology, and suggest future areas of study that may improve and optimize the technique.

Illuminating the Secrets of Crystals - Microcrystal Electron Diffraction in Structural Biology

An exploration of the crystallographic theory of the relatively novel method of Microcrystal Electron Diffraction (MicroED), via comparison to X-ray crystallography at the theoretical and practical level as it applies to biological macromolecules. We then attempt to outline the limitations and challenges that the technique currently faces in structural biology, and suggest future areas of study that may improve and optimize the technique.

Illuminating the Secrets of Crystals - Microcrystal Electron Diffraction in Structural Biology

An exploration of the crystallographic theory of the relatively novel method of Microcrystal Electron Diffraction (MicroED), via comparison to X-ray crystallography at the theoretical and practical level. We then attempt to outline the limitations and challenges that the technique currently faces, and suggests future areas of study that may improve and optimize the technique.

A MATHEMATICAL APPROACH TO STRUCTURAL TRANSITIONS IN VIRAL CAPSIDS

The majority of viruses have protein containers, called capsids, in which proteins are arranged with icosahedral symmetry. The capsids of these viruses follow structural blueprints that can be modelled as subsets of 3-dimensional aperiodic lattices called quasicrystals. These, in turn, can be obained by projection from 6-dimensional Bravais lattices. In this work we apply the crystallographic theory of phase transitions to these 6D lattices, and via projection of these results derive information on the structural transitions of viruses important for infection.