Editing Dorothy Hodgkin (section)

===Insulin structure===
[[Insulin]] was one of Hodgkin's most extraordinary research projects. It began in 1934 when she was offered a small sample of crystalline insulin by [[Robert Robinson (organic chemist)|Robert Robinson]]. The [[hormone]] captured her imagination because of the intricate and wide-ranging effect it has in the body. However, at this stage X-ray crystallography had not been developed far enough to cope with the complexity of the insulin molecule. She and others spent many years improving the technique.

It took 35 years after taking her first photograph of an insulin crystal for X-ray crystallography and computing techniques to be able to tackle larger and more complex molecules like insulin. Hodgkin's dream of unlocking the structure of insulin was put on hold until 1969 when she was finally able to work with her team of young, international scientists to uncover the structure for the first time. Hodgkin's work with insulin was instrumental in paving the way for insulin to be mass-produced and used on a large scale for treatment of both type one and type two diabetes.<ref name="massivesci.com">{{cite web |last1=Weidman |first1=Chelsea |title=Meet Dorothy Hodgkin, the biochemist who pieced together penicillin, insulin, and vitamin B12 |url=https://massivesci.com/articles/dorothy-hodgkin-facts-penicillin-insulin-vitamin-b12-folate-cobalamin-antibiotic/ |website=Massive Science |date=12 May 2019 |access-date=9 June 2020 |archive-date=10 August 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200810082716/https://massivesci.com/articles/dorothy-hodgkin-facts-penicillin-insulin-vitamin-b12-folate-cobalamin-antibiotic/ |url-status=live }}</ref> She went on to cooperate with other laboratories active in insulin research, giving advice, and traveling the world giving talks about insulin and its importance for the future of [[diabetes]]. Solving the structure of insulin had two important implications for the treatment of diabetes, both making mass production of insulin possible and allowing scientists to alter the structure of insulin to create even better drug options for patients going forward.<ref name="massivesci.com"/>