You can read the latest crystallography news now in my column on SpectroscopyNOW.com, just hit the X-ray site. David Bradley Science Writer writes the monthly news column for three sections of the SpectroscopyNOW.com site - Spectral Lines, Resonants and X-factors.
The latest issue of X-factors is now online.
Cryo-electron
microscopy experiments on viral coat proteins obtained by US scientists have
been compared with XRD results on related proteins from another virus to reveal
that the two distinct viruses use the same protein fold in their outer
protective shells, or capsids. The viral revelation hints that although the two
sit on separate branches of the family tree, they shared a common ancestor a
billion years ago. The research is providing new clues as to how viruses have
evolved and might one day offer new targets for disease prevention.
The
tiny D-CIXS X-ray spectrometer aboard ESA's SMART-1 spacecraft has detected
calcium on the Moon unambiguously for the first time via remote sensing. The
fifteen centimetre cube that is D-CIXS will measure the composition of the Moon
by observing its glow in solar X-rays, each chemical element providing a
characteristic signal.
X-ray
fluorescence holography (XFH) is a relatively new technique that allows
researchers to investigate the local three-dimensional atomic structure around
specific elements. Japanese researchers have recently exploited its power to
investigate the effects of irradiation on the electrical and magnetic properties
of high-temperature superconductors.