With the deciphering of the human genome, nanoscale research in biology and life sciences has moved to proteomics, the understanding of all the proteins and their interactions in the cell or an organism. Many proteins and interactions between have been studied in vitro using biochemical means. In order to validate the interaction and the role of proteins in situ studies are needed.
The in situ studies can either be done in whole cells or in tissue sections and require the localization of protein molecules at high resolution inside the cell. Transmission electron microscopy (TEM) studies, using gold-labeled antibodies, are ideally suited to determine the localization of one or multiple proteins inside a cell with respect to surrounding cellular structures.
Such localization and co-localization studies will be able to validate whether the proposed function of the protein is realistic in the context of the area in the cell where the protein is found.
FEIelectron microscopes that are ideally suited for protein localization studies:
- The Morgagni 268 [PDF 277KB], a transmission electron microscope (TEM) contains required functionality, including digital imaging and an easy-to-use microscope interface.
- The Tecnai Spirit [PDF 60KB] provides a higher degree of automated microscope functionality, more options for digital cameras, integrated image management and more capabilities for future upgrades. It also guarantees access to tomography as well as to cryo electron microscopy to image samples in 3D and under cryo conditions.
- The Quanta FEG scanning microscope [PDF 72KB] offers possibilities for studying immuno-gold labeled proteins bound to the cellular membrane. The proprietary vacuum system enables fully hydrated cell imaging and the available detectors enable cell morphology studies as well as an unprecedented range of imaging capabilities.
More on FEI systems with models used in protein localization applications: