Breakthrough Advances in Atomic Resolution Cryo-EM

Earlier this year, we unveiled new imaging filters that make it possible to view proteins at true atomic resolution. This technology has already led to stunning breakthroughs in cryo-electron microscopy (cryo-EM) research.

Latest advances in atomic resolution cryo electron microscopy

Using the Selectris X Imaging Filter in combination with a Krios Cryo-Transmission Electron Microscope, my colleagues collaborated with researchers from the Medical Research Council Laboratory of Molecular Biology in Cambridge, UK to obtain a 1.2 ångström resolution structure of the iron-storing protein apoferritin. They also achieved a 1.7 ångström resolution of the GABA Type A receptor-associated protein, with an even sharper resolution in key parts of the protein. These record-breaking resolution results, which were published in Nature on Oct. 21, are just one example of the breakthrough discoveries speeding the path to disease understanding and treatment.

As cryo-EM research breaks the atomic resolution barrier and launches a second resolution revolution, biologists are achieving a wide range of critical breakthroughs. New levels of automation in recent technologies facilitate sample preparation and lamella creation, making it easier to see proteins close to their native state. Our Nov. 5 livestream event, Atomic Resolution Cryo-EM: There’s More! will show how these advancements accelerate the path to drug discovery.

Using a Selectris X filter, researchers at the Medical Research Council Laboratory of Molecular Biology obtained a 1.2 ångström resolution structure of the protein apoferritin. (Image courtesy of Sjors Scheres, MRC-LMB, Cambridge and Abhay Kotecha, Thermo Fisher Scientific)

Cryo electron microscopy instrumentation webinar

Please join our livestream where our team will discuss some of the relentless innovation over the past year that’s led to this resolution milestone. We’ll showcase recent record-breaking research, including 200 kV results from the Thermo Scientific Glacios Cryo-TEM, showing how scientists are uncovering protein structures at the atomic level and changing the game for drug discovery. We are excited to answer your questions and look forward to an engaging session.

Steve Reyntjens is a Director of Product Marketing of Life Sciences Electron Microscopy at Thermo Fisher Scientific.

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