DIALS

Info

DIALS is an open-source software suite for processing crystallographic X-ray diffraction data. Collaboration between Diamond Light Source (UK), Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory (USA), and CCP4. Designated an NIH NIGMS US National Resource. Handles rotation, serial, and multi-crystal experiments. Released 2016. Distributed as part of the CCP4 suite.

DiffUSE relevance

DIALS is directly relevant to DiffUSE’s data collection and processing work. Aaron Brewster leads the LBNL DIALS effort AND chairs the NIAC — connecting diffraction data processing to data format standards governance. DIALS is being adapted for XFEL serial crystallography at LBNL.

People

Name	Role	Affiliation
Aaron Brewster	Lead (LBNL); also NIAC Chair	Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory
Gwyndaf Evans	Lead (Diamond)	Diamond Light Source
David Waterman	Lead developer (refinement)	STFC / CCP4
James Parkhurst	Developer	Diamond Light Source
Nicholas Sauter	Key collaborator (LBNL); XFEL / serial crystallography lead	Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory
Garib Murshudov	Collaborator (MRC-LMB)	MRC-LMB

Aaron Brewster overlap

Aaron Brewster leads DIALS at LBNL AND chairs the NIAC. He is at the same institution as Paul Adams (PHENIX). This makes LBNL a major nexus connecting diffraction processing, data formats, and refinement software.

Funding

• Wellcome Trust (218270/Z/19/Z) — Diamond side
• NIH/NIGMS R24GM154040 — LBNL side (US National Resource designation)
• DOE (DE-AC02-05CH11231) — LBNL
• STFC via CCP4 — Diamond/STFC side

Key Relationships

• Distributed as part of CCP4 suite
• Gwyndaf Evans is on CCP4 Executive Committee
• Competes with XDS (Wolfgang Kabsch, closed-source) and Global Phasing Ltd autoPROC for data processing
• Built on cctbx (same computational crystallography toolbox as PHENIX)
• Collaborators at MRC-LMB: Garib Murshudov (also Coot group leader), Andrew Leslie, Phil Evans

Key Reference

Winter et al., Acta Cryst D74, 85-97 (2018) Brewster et al., Acta Cryst D74, 877-894 (2018)