I guess that this crystal was never tested with any X-ray source. After all George is a physicist who study photosynthesis processes by spectroscopic methods. However (unrelated but connected) I have collected once a data set from a see urchin needle which was 1 cm long, about 3 mm across (protein mass was dissolved), it was a single crystal despite a complicated and beautiful architecture, and mosaicity was about 0.5 deg on a Rigaku AFC5 diffractometer (mounted on a rotating anode with Ni filter. So I would not bet on the large crystal - big mosaicity formula.
FF This remarkable hollow Dr Felix Frolow Professor of Structural Biology and Biotechnology, Department of Molecular Microbiology and Biotechnology Tel Aviv University 69978, Israel Acta Crystallographica F, co-editor e-mail: [email protected] Tel: ++972-3640-8723 Fax: ++972-3640-9407 Cellular: 0547 459 608 On Oct 25, 2013, at 16:54 , Derek Logan <[email protected]> wrote: > Hi Felix, > > What was the mosaicity of this crystal? The absorption correction must have > been challenging too... > > Derek > > On 25 Oct 2013, at 13:23, Felix Frolow <[email protected]> wrote: > >> Well if we start recalling rumours, I have heard that in UC San Diego in >> the laboratory of George Feher there was (is) a tetragonal hen egg white >> lysozyme crystal >> which weighted between 0.5 - 1.0 kg. >> It grew suspend on a mountain boots shoelace of the read colour. >> I have never visited George laboratory, but maybe among the society there >> are some who can shed some light on that…. >> FF >> Dr Felix Frolow >> Professor of Structural Biology and Biotechnology, Department of Molecular >> Microbiology and Biotechnology >> Tel Aviv University 69978, Israel >> >> Acta Crystallographica F, co-editor >> >> e-mail: [email protected] >> Tel: ++972-3640-8723 >> Fax: ++972-3640-9407 >> Cellular: 0547 459 608 >> >> On Oct 25, 2013, at 12:18 , Boaz Shaanan <[email protected]> wrote: >> >>> Hi, Referring to the Hb crystal that Bill Scott saw in the MRC crystal >>> growing room (by now "tho old one" I guess), is that the one that was >>> sitting in the largest part of the Pasteur pipette? I recall this one and I >>> keep telling my students about it when they ask about crystal size limits. >>> Cheers, Boaz >>> >>> >>> >>> -------- הודעה מקורית -------- >>> מאת: [email protected] >>> תאריך: >>> אל: [email protected] >>> נושא: Re: [ccp4bb] largest protein crystal ever grown? >>> >>> >>> Hi Derek, >>> >>> That brings back memories. I am pretty certain that is the myoglobin >>> crystal that was already on Benno's shelf at Brookhaven when I went there >>> in 1980 to collect my oxymyoglobin neutron data. It would the metmyoglobin >>> crystal Benno got the early neutron data from. He just kept it on the >>> shelf because there was, of course, no degradation in the beam and a >>> crystal is a pretty stable way to store a protein. Whenever he wanted more >>> data he took it off the shelf and put it back on the beamline. If Benno is >>> reading this bulletin board I am sure he could tell us more. >>> >>> Simon >>> >>> Simon E.V. Phillips >>> Director, Research Complex at Harwell (RCaH) >>> Rutherford Appleton Laboratory >>> Harwell Oxford >>> Didcot >>> Oxon OX11 0FA >>> United Kingdom >>> Email: [email protected] >>> Direct email: [email protected] >>> Tel: +44 (0)1235 567701 (direct) >>> +44 (0)1235 567700 (sec) >>> +44 (0)7884 436011 (mobile) >>> www: www.rc-harwell.ac.uk >>> >>> -----Original Message----- >>> From: CCP4 bulletin board [mailto:[email protected]] On Behalf Of Derek >>> Logan >>> Sent: 24 October 2013 19:08 >>> To: ccp4bb >>> Subject: Re: [ccp4bb] largest protein crystal ever grown? >>> >>> Hi, >>> >>> Last spring I visited the Protein Crystallography Station at Los Alamos. On >>> a shelf, in a capillary in a serious exhibition-quality glass dome, was a >>> crystal of myoglobin some 50 mm**3, if I remember correctly. I was told it >>> had been made by Benno Schoenborn some decades earlier and had been exposed >>> to most of the neutron sources in the world (radiation damage - forget >>> about it!) Paul Langan or Zoë Fisher can correct me if I've exaggerated the >>> size or age. >>> >>> Anyway, as I already lost the record several times over for having seen the >>> biggest protein crystal ever, I can share with you the surprise and delight >>> of having to centre the crystals using a telescope mounted on a tripod on >>> the other side of the room. Apparently the magnification on the microscope >>> on the diffractometer (visible in this photo, and maybe the giant crystal >>> too? >>> http://www.lanl.gov/_assets/php/flickrImage.php?photo_id=5033219363&secret=291f519124) >>> was too high, so any "neutron-size" crystals would filled the whole field >>> of view even if they were not well-centered. >>> >>> FWIW, my crystals (somewhat optimistically 0.4 mm**3) didn't diffract >>> neutrons even after a 24h exposure :-) >>> >>> Derek >>> ________________________________________________________________________ >>> Derek Logan tel: +46 46 222 1443 >>> Associate Professor mob: +46 76 8585 707 >>> Dept. of Biochemistry and Structural Biology www.cmps.lu.se >>> Centre for Molecular Protein Science www.maxlab.lu.se/node/307 >>> Lund University, Box 124, 221 00 Lund, Sweden >>> >>> On 24 Oct 2013, at 18:35, Victor Lamzin <[email protected]> wrote: >>> >>> > Also following on from John's comment - back to the times of my PhD I was >>> > repeatedly growing crystals of bacterial formate dehydrogenase (80 kDa) >>> > of a size about 7x1.5x1 mm. I thought that was quite normal and did not >>> > even think of making a photo of 'just a protein crystal'. >>> > >>> > Victor >>> This email and any attachments may contain confidential, copyright and or >>> privileged material, and are for the use of the intended addressee only. If >>> you are not the intended addressee or an authorized recipient of the >>> addressee, please notify us of receipt by returning the e-mail and do not >>> use, copy, retain, distribute or disclose the information in or attached to >>> this email. >>> >>> Any views or opinions presented are solely those of the author and do not >>> necessarily represent those of the Research Complex at Harwell. >>> >>> There is no guarantee that this email or any attachments are free from >>> viruses and we cannot accept liability for any damage which you may sustain >>> as a result of software viruses which may be transmitted in or with the >>> message. >>> >>> We use an electronic filing system. Please send electronic versions of >>> documents, unless paper is specifically requested. >>> >>> This email may have a protective marking, for an explanation, please see: >>> http://www.mrc.ac.uk/About/informationandstandards/documentmarking/index.htm. >> >
