In Feburary a new detector was installed at one of the three MX beamlines at HZB.
Compared to the old detector the new one is better, faster and more sensitive. It allows to acquire complete data sets of complex proteins within a very short time.
Proteins consist of thousands of building blocks that can form complex architectures with folded or entangled regions. However, their shape plays a decisive role in the function of the protein in the organism. Using macromolecular crystallography at BESSY II, it is possible to decipher the architecture of protein molecules. For this purpose, tiny protein crystals are irradiated with X-ray light from the synchrotron source BESSY II. From the obtained diffraction patterns, the morphology of the molecules can be calculated.
>Read more on the BESSY II at HZB website
Image: 60s on the new detector were sufficient to obtain the electron density of the PETase enzyme.
Credit: HZB