The relevance of small molecule crystal growth theories and techniques to the growth of biological macromolecules

Over the past 40 years scientists and engineers working on the crystal growth of small molecule materials have developed a strong theoretical background and an impressive array of crystal growth technologies to aid in the growth of a wide variety of materials having extremely diverse properties. One of the major issues brought up at the First International Conference on Protein Crystal Growth at Stanford University in August 1985 was whether these pre-existing theories and techniques would be applicable to the crystal growth of biologically active macromolecules such as peoteins. This lecture explores some of the similarities and differences between the properties of small and large molecule materials and their growth behavior, and looks for any common denominators which may exist and how they can serve as a bridge between the two fields to help facilitate cross-fertilization.