Levenstein Mark A, Robertson Karen, Turner Thomas D, Hunter Liam, O'Brien Cate, O'Shaughnessy Cedrick, Kulak Alexander N, Le Magueres Pierre, Wojciechowski Jakub, Mykhaylyk Oleksandr O, Kapur Nikil, Meldrum Fiona C
Université Paris-Saclay, CEA, CNRS, NIMBE, 91191 Gif-sur-Yvette, France.
Department of Chemical and Environmental Engineering, University of Nottingham, University Park, Nottingham NG7 2RD, United Kingdom.
IUCrJ. 2022 Aug 13;9(Pt 5):538-543. doi: 10.1107/S2052252522007631. eCollection 2022 Sep 1.
Recent advances in X-ray instrumentation and sample injection systems have enabled serial crystallography of protein nanocrystals and the rapid structural analysis of dynamic processes. However, this progress has been restricted to large-scale X-ray free-electron laser (XFEL) and synchrotron facilities, which are often oversubscribed and have long waiting times. Here, we explore the potential of state-of-the-art laboratory X-ray systems to perform comparable analyses when coupled to micro- and millifluidic sample environments. Our results demonstrate that commercial small- and wide-angle X-ray scattering (SAXS/WAXS) instruments and X-ray diffractometers are ready to access samples and timescales (≳5 ms) relevant to many processes in materials science including the preparation of pharmaceuticals, nanoparticles and functional crystalline materials. Tests of different X-ray instruments highlighted the importance of the optical configuration and revealed that serial WAXS/XRD analysis of the investigated samples was only possible with the higher flux of a microfocus setup. We expect that these results will also stimulate similar developments for structural biology.
X射线仪器和样品注射系统的最新进展使得蛋白质纳米晶体的串行晶体学以及动态过程的快速结构分析成为可能。然而，这一进展仅限于大型X射线自由电子激光（XFEL）和同步加速器设施，这些设施常常供不应求，且等待时间很长。在此，我们探索了最先进的实验室X射线系统与微流体和毫流体样品环境相结合时进行类似分析的潜力。我们的结果表明，商用小角和广角X射线散射（SAXS/WAXS）仪器以及X射线衍射仪已准备好获取与材料科学中的许多过程（包括药物、纳米颗粒和功能性晶体材料的制备）相关的样品和时间尺度（≳5毫秒）。对不同X射线仪器的测试突出了光学配置的重要性，并表明只有使用微聚焦装置的更高通量才能对所研究的样品进行串行WAXS/XRD分析。我们预计这些结果也将刺激结构生物学的类似发展。
