Within cells or subcellular compartments misfolded and/or short-lived regulatory proteins are degraded by protease machines,cage-forming multi-subunit assemblages.Their proteolytic active sites are sequestered within the particles and located on the inner walls.Access of protein substrates is regulated by protein subcomplexes or protein domains which may assist in substrate unfolding dependent of ATP.All of these large proteases are involved in physiological processes in health and disease and are in the focus of pharmacology and drug design,whereby structure-based procedures play an important role.The basis of the studies described and of molecular biology in general is X-ray diffraction of crystals,discovered by Laue in 1912 in München.We celebrate the Laue Centennial in the year 2012.With a few slides I shall commemorate history and development of Laues discovery,which revolutionized many fields of science.