【Seminar】"Extending the Reach of CryoEM" by Dr. Christopher J. Russo, MRC Laboratory of Molecular Biology

Title: Extending the Reach of CryoEM

Speaker: Christopher J. Russo

MRC Laboratory of Molecular Biology, Francis Crick Avenue

Cambridge, United Kingdom CB2 0QH.

E-mail: crusso@mrc-lmb.cam.ac.uk

Ten years on from the “resolution revolution”, molecular structure determination using electron cryomicroscopy (cryoEM) is poised to surpass X-ray crystallography as the most used method for experimentally determining new structures [1]. But the technique has not reached the physical limits set by radiation damage and the signal-to-noise ratio in individual images of molecules. By examining these limits, recent work on radiation damage to biological molecules at different temperatures [2,3] energies [4,5], and specimen preparation methods [6], I will identify opportunities for extending the application of single-particle cryoEM to smaller, larger and more difficult structures, and into specimens taken directly from vitrified cells. This will help guide technology development to continue the growth of structural biology in the coming decade.

References

[1] A. Patwardhan, R. Henderson, C.J. Russo, Extending the reach of single-particle cryoEM, COSB  92 (2025) 103005.

[2] K. Naydenova, A. Kamegawa, M. J. Peet, R. Henderson, Y. Fujiyoshi, C. J. Russo, On the           reduction in the effects of radiation damage to two-dimensional crystals of organic and biological molecules at liquid-helium temperature, Ultramicroscopy 237 (2022) 113512.

[3] J. L. Dickerson, K. Naydenova, M. J. Peet, H. Wilson, B. Nandy, G. McMullan, R. Morrison, C. J. Russo. Reducing the effects of radiation damage in cryo-EM using liquid helium temperatures. PNAS 122 (2025) e2421538122.

[4] M.J. Peet, R. Henderson, C.J. Russo, The energy dependence of contrast and damage in electron cryomicroscopy of biological molecules, Ultramicroscopy 203 (2019) 125–131.

[5] G. McMullan et al. Structure determination by cryoEM at 100 keV. PNAS 120 (2023) e2312905120.

[6] A. Gusach K. Sader, C.J. Russo, Outrunning protein diffusion to the air–water interface in cryoEM. PNAS 122 (2025) e2516900122.