Argonne scientists use lasers to align moleculesBy Jared Sagoff
• May 13, 2008 Technique could revolutionize human protein
imaging ARGONNE, Ill. – Protein crystallographers have only
scratched the surface of the human proteins important for drug
interactions because of difficulties crystallizing the molecules
for synchrotron X-ray diffraction. Now scientists at the U.S.
Department of Energy's (DOE) Argonne National Laboratory have
devised a way to eliminate the need for crystallization by using
lasers to align large groups of molecules. "Strong laser fields
can be used to control the behavior of atoms and molecules,"
Argonne Distinguished Fellow Linda Young said. "Using X-rays, we
can investigate their properties in a totally new way."
Crystallization allows scientists to create a periodic structure
that will strongly diffract in specific directions when
bombarded with X-rays. From the resulting diffraction pattern,
scientists can construct a real-space image of the crystal.
However, without crystallization,