Trends in Biochemical Sciences | November 7, 2014
Xiao-chen Bai, Greg McMullan, Sjors HW Scheres
Trends Biochem Sci. 2015 Jan;40(1):49-57. doi: 10.1016/j.tibs.2014.10.005. Epub 2014 Nov 7.
Abstract
For many years, structure determination of biological macromolecules by cryo-electron microscopy (cryo-EM) was limited to large complexes or low-resolution models. With recent advances in electron detection and image processing, the resolution by cryo-EM is now beginning to rival X-ray crystallography. A new generation of electron detectors record images with unprecedented quality, while new image-processing tools correct for sample movements and classify images according to different structural states. Combined, these advances yield density maps with sufficient detail to deduce the atomic structure for a range of specimens. Here, we review the recent advances and illustrate the exciting new opportunities that they offer to structural biology research.
