Biology Reference
In-Depth Information
Structurally based drug design
— Finding an efficient drug based on
knowledge of the three-dimensional structure of an infectious agent
(protein, virus).
Synchrotron source
— A specially built X-ray source of extremely high
intensity.
Well
— A single device where crystallization can be performed by
hanging or sitting drop.
X-ray
— Non-nuclear radiation generated by extremely high temperatures
or the bombardment of heavy metals, such as tungsten, by kilovolt
electrons in X-ray machines. X-rays have wavelengths between 10
−11
to 10
−08
m (0.1 to 100 Å), placing them between ultraviolet light and
gamma-rays.
X-rays are used in medical diagnostics and to measure the separation
of atoms and crystalline planes within crystals.
Ångström
(Å) — A unit of length equal to 10
−10
m. It is used to describe
crystalline unit cell dimensions and the wavelengths of light and X-rays.
It is more properly termed 0.1 nm (nanometer), but its long-term and
widespread usage has made “Ångström” an acceptable unit of measure-
ment. Swedish physicist Anders Jonas Ångström (1814-1874) lived in
Uppsala, Sweden.
