Crystallography & Canada
From East to West, Canada has a rich history in crystallography, with several prominent researchers and institutions contributing to its growth and development.
The Canadian Light Source is a national research facility located in Saskatchewan. It was established in 1999 and opened in 2004. This synchrotron facility is one of the largest science projects in Canada’s history, and a critical tool for Canadian research and development. It is home to the Canadian Macromolecular Crystallography Facility and the Brockhouse X-ray Diffraction and Scattering Beamlines.
A Very Brief List of Canadian Structural Science Researchers & Accomplishments
There is no doubt that Canada has been home to several remarkable researchers who have made substantial contributions to the field of crystallography. Their invaluable work has paved the way for groundbreaking advancements in understanding the atomic and molecular structures of materials.
From the pioneering accomplishments of James Hillier, who played a crucial role in the development of the electron microscope, to the notable endeavors of Frank Hawthorne, renowned for his contributions in mineralogical crystallography, Canadian scientists have consistently demonstrated their expertise and dedication.
Moreover, the significant contributions of Canadian researchers like Larry Calvert, who chaired the IUCr’s XIIth International Congress and General Assembly held in Ottawa in 1981, and established a trust fund to support student travel still maintained today by the Canadian National Committee for Crystallography.
The first protein structure determined in Canada was SGPB, a proteolytic enzyme from the soil bacterium Streptomyces griseus. This was done in the laboratory of Michael James in Alberta, and the paper describing the molecular details of the 2.8 Å resolution structure was published in Nature in 1975.
Through their groundbreaking discoveries and unwavering commitment to scientific exploration, Canadian researchers continue to shape the field of crystallography and inspire countless others to follow in their footsteps.
For more information on the history of crystallography and North America we encourage you to visit the ACA History Project, which has an entire section of videos and articles on crystallography in the Americas.
Above is a photo of an early electron microscope is pictured in the bottom left and courtesy of By J Brew, uploaded on the English-speaking Wikipedia by en:User:Hat'nCoat. - originally posted to Flickr as Electron Microscope Deutsches Museum, CC BY-SA 3.0, https://commons.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?curid=5309032
Frank Hawthorne (pictured above courtesy of the ACA History Project) https://history.amercrystalassn.org/h-hawthorne_memoir
Larry Calvert (pictured above courtesy of the ACA History Project) https://history.amercrystalassn.org/h-calvert_memoir
Michael James (pictured above courtesy of the ACA History Project) https://history.amercrystalassn.org/h-michael_james_memoir
Canada Continues at the the Forefront of Structural Science Advancements
Frank Sicheri and Dan Yang (McMaster University) solved the first crystal structure of an antifreeze protein and published it in Nature in 1995. This work was quickly followed by the Davies lab (Queens Univ) who solved the structure of type III antifreeze protein, published in Nature in 1996. The Davies and Jia labs have continued working on antifreeze proteins from other families. Davies also worked with Brian Sykes (Alberta) on the NMR structures that were published the same year (1996) in Structure. Ice cream quality is much better for their discoveries!
Canadian researchers have made significant contributions to ongoing research in the areas of alternative materials for energy generation and storage, increasingly synthesized using sustainable methodology. Groups lead by George Shimizu (University of Calgary), Arthur Mar (University of Alberta), and emerging investigators Ashlee Howarth (Concordia University, Quebec) and Mike Katz (Memorial University, Newfoundland) have been internationally recognized, and continue to build on their recognized expertise.
In 2002, I. David Brown (McMaster University, ON, Canada) published his work on “The Chemical Bond in Inorganic Chemistry, The Bond Valence Model.” He was also instrumental in the establishment of the Inorganic Crystal Structure Database and the development of the Crystallographic Information File (CIF) as a standard for crystallography.