{c}
{tag=Crystallography}
{wiki}

One of its main applications is to determine the 3D structure of <proteins>.

Sometimes you are not able to crystallize the proteins however, and the method cannot be used.

Crystallizing is not simple because:
* you need a considerable amount of the protein
* sometimes it only crystallizes if you add some extra small chemical that stabilizes it

<Cryogenic electron microscopy> can sometimes determine the structures of proteins that failed crystallization.


Discussion on "X-ray crystallography" by Ciro Santilli 32