New Facility for Structural Biology to investigate the molecules of life with powerful synchrotron radiation

The new facility will comprise a complete and automated pipeline for structural investigations of proteins and other biological molecules using high-energy X-rays it will start operations in 2010. X-rays are an extremely powerful tool in the life sciences. The crucial molecules that determine our life, such as proteins and DNA, are too small to be observed with even the most sophisticated light microscopes. Structural biologists use the high-energy radiation of DESY's synchrotron to generate three-dimensional images and to study the structure of biological molecules. Often the high-resolution images of proteins involved in diseases serve as the starting-point for the development of new drugs.