X-ray crystallography in medicinal biology

Abstract

X-ray crystallography (XRC) has been of tremendous use since its discovery. This chapter explores the various applications of XRC and X-ray fluorescence (XRF) in healthcare. Plasmodial Pyridoxal kinases provide new insights for antimalarial drug design after its X-ray diffraction analysis. XRF promises an effective tool for monitoring chromium levels in skin toward diagnosis of diabetes. Metal accumulations in tissues have been found in kidneys, joints, and the thyroid in cases of autoimmune diseases like systemic lupus erythematosus, rheumatoid arthritis, and Grave's disease respectively. XRC studies of these metal deposits can help in understanding the pathophysiology and possible preventions or treatment of such metallic depositions in the cells. XRF is used in the identification of calcified or precipitated solid objects, and rarely contains foreign objects in pathological specimens. Trace element analysis shows the impact of environmental pollution on our body. © 2022 John Wiley & Sons Ltd. All rights reserved.