Once the heteronuclear seeds had been used in the lab, the cocrystal formed regardless of whether or not the seeds were used

The caffeine•benzoic acid cocrystal that has eluded scientists for 60 years has finally been crystallised

Cocrystals are crystalline materials composed of two or more molecules held together within the same crystal lattice. Cocrystallisation is significant in the pharmaceutical industry, where drug molecules are screened for cocrystal formation in order to improve their solubility, stability and bioavailability. This has the added advantage of increasing the number of crystal forms that can be considered for drug formulation while simultaneously maximising patent protection.