Hi, During the process of protein crystallization many salts are present in the buffer we use…now when these salts can also form crystal, how do we know which is a protein crystal and which one is a salt crystal (prior to x-ray diffraction study)?
Leemark
Two simple tests could be done for this
- Protein crystals typically have well-defined, characteristic shapes (e.g., cubes, rods, needles, or plate-like structures) that are more uniform and often reflect light in a particular way due to their internal structure. Protein crystals are usually more transparent and may be larger, though not always. On the other hand, Salt crystals tend to have a more regular geometric shape, such as cubes or rhombohedra, and can be much smaller than protein crystals and are usually opaque.
- Salt crystals are often more numerous and may cluster together more than protein crystals.