The ITABAG includes structural biologists from Universities, the National Research Council and Hospital research centres in Italy. The laboratories take advantage of single crystal and small angle X-ray diffraction methods to study the structure-function relationships in various macromolecules. A unifying factor for the clear majority of the macromolecules under study is their relationship to human health, either directly, being human proteins involved in some disease, or indirectly, as proteins expressed by human pathogens and validated as potential pharmacological targets. Other projects investigate basic chemical processes, the study of plant viral proteins, or aim at characterising macromolecules with potential biotechnological applications including drug delivery.