 | Acta Crystallographica Section F Acta Crystallographica Section F STRUCTURAL BIOLOGY COMMUNICATIONS |
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![[Figure 3]](en5545fig3mag.jpg)
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Figure 3
The phase diagram for the crystallization of macromolecules. The solubility diagram is divided sharply into a region of undersaturation and a region of supersaturation by the line denoting maximum solubility at specific concentrations of a precipitant, which may be salt or a polymer. The line represents the equilibrium between the existence of the solid phase and the free-molecule phase. The region of supersaturation is further divided in a more uncertain way into the metastable and labile regions. In the metastable region nuclei will develop into crystals, but no nucleation will occur. In the labile region both might be expected to occur. The final region, at very high supersaturation, is denoted the precipitation region, where this result might be most probable. Crystals can only be grown from a supersaturated solution, and creating such a solution supersaturated in the protein of interest is the immediate objective in growing protein crystals. |
![[Figure 3]](en5545fig3.jpg)
| STRUCTURAL BIOLOGY COMMUNICATIONS |
ISSN: 2053-230X
