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The Molecule that Makes Breathing Worthwhile Hemoglobin is the iron-bearing protein that most animals use to carry oxygen from their lungs to their muscles, or wherever it's needed for metabolism, i.e. life. It's the most important part of red blood cells, and its iron is what makes them red. This sculpture, etched in a heavy 3 1/4" glass cube, shows hemoglobin's beautiful structure: the four heme groups each with its iron atom, the two alpha and two beta subunits, and the translucent molecular surface over all.
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As well as being handsome and useful, hemoglobin is a star of scientific history. With its close relative myoglobin, it was the first protein to have its 3D structure determined by X-ray crystallography. Max Perutz and John Kendrew at Cambridge University received the Nobel Prize in 1962 for doing it. Data for this sculpture comes from the Protein Data Bank, where several hemoglobin structures are available. This one is 1A0Z, due to Dr. Arthur Arnone at the University of Iowa.
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The Hemoglobin Crystal comes with clear rubber feet to prevent scratches on your desk or mantel. Without a stand, it works best against
a dark background.
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Deep Symmetry of Life
For anyone who loves life science, the Hemoglobin Crystal offers a look
into biomolecular structure: a research-quality model of an essential,
universal, and beautiful protein.
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