A Short Review on Cryoprotectants for 3D Protein Structure Analysis

The three-dimensional structure of protein is determined by analyzing diffraction data collected using X-ray beams. However, X-ray beam can damage protein crystals during data collection, lowering the quality of the crystal data. A way to prevent such damage is by treating protein crystals with cryoprotectants. The cryoprotectant stabilizes the protein crystal and prevents lowering the quality of the diffraction data. Many kinds of cryoprotectants are commercially available, and various treatment methods have also been reported. However, incorrect selection or treatment of such cryoprotectants may lead to deterioration of crystal diffraction data when using X-ray beams.