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We have imaged protein concentration distribution in a time lapse fashion. In these early measurements we set up lysozyme under high salt conditions looking for quick nucleation and crystal growth so the entire event could be imaged over a reasonable duration. We observe an initial increase in overall protein concentration and a subsequent leveling off. As the protein concentration reaches a steady-state value, large scale crystallization starts to occur. Also, prior to crystallization, we see a large-area (long wavelength, low-amplitude) tsunami-like shifting of protein concentration which seems to settle once crystallization takes off. We were looking for more localized concentration gradients and depletion zones, etc., but perhaps the conditions that give rise to numerous medium and small-sized crystals do not exhibit these phenomena. We are a small start-up company whose main thrust is instrumentation and this is more of a curiosity project. Is there interest in this sort of thing or is everything important that needs to be known about crystallization, known already? If there are experimentalists and theorists who'd like to collaborate, please reply. Thanks, V. Nagarajan
