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Tecnai™ Spirit Transmission Electron Microscope (TEM)

As easy to use as a light microscope, with the resolution needed for today's crucial biological investigations
Tecnai Spirit Transmission Electron Microscope (TEM)

The Tecnai Spirit is an easy-to-use TEM designed to provide high-contrast, high-resolution imaging and analysis in life science applications. Its unique BioTWIN lens is designed for optimal contrast and allows the observation of unstained material. Sophisticated automation allows you to concentrate on scientific challenges rather than the details of operating the instrument. A series of embedded side-mount and bottom-mount CCD cameras provide instant, high-quality digital results at the push of a button. Available 3D imaging software (Xplore3D) automatically collects tomographic tilt series and reconstructs detailed 3D models of intricate biological structures.

The Tecnai Spirit TEM's fast, convenient embedded automation, automatically performs many routine operating procedures. It can automatically tune, align, saturate, and condition the gun and illumination, focus (or defocus) the image, and minimize astigmatism. Automation lowers the productivity threshold for novice users and helps ensure repeatable, high-quality results for all users.

Key Benefits:

  • Easy enough for novice users in transmission electron microscopy
  • Designed for 2D and 3D imaging of cells, cell organelles and soft matter
  • High level of automation with customized protocols for diverse applications
  • Optimized for cryo electron microscopy
  • Total solution for dual-axis 3D tomography
  • Ergonomic design for operational comfort
  • High contrast and high resolution for 20 kV to 120 kV operation
  • Outstanding analytical performance

"The Tecnai Spirit is the perfect tool for Cellular Biology - it is easy to use and the image quality is superb. The user experience is enhanced through the integration of all essential microscope functions, enabling easy control through a single, user-friendly interface."

Professor Wanzhong He, Department of Biological Sciences, National University of Singapore
 

Biological systems are intrinsically three dimensional. The ability to see all three dimensions is an invaluable aid to understanding the relationships between structure and function throughout the range of scales and across all levels of the organizational hierarchy. Xplore3D tomography software provides a fast, easy, complete solution for dual- and single-axis electron tomography.

Conventional sample preparation procedures - which use various chemical and physical methods to dry, fix, and stain the sample - can introduce artifacts and destroy delicate biological structures. Cryo TEM examines rapidly frozen specimens, allowing you to visualize three-dimensional structures in pristine, fully-hydrated condition, and in their naturally occurring context. The Tecnai Spirit TEM provides extensive support for handling and maintaining samples at cryogenic temperatures. FEI's Vitrobot™, an automated cryo sample preparation tool, can be used with the Tecnai Spirit TEM to provide a complete solution for cryo TEM. The high-performance vacuum system of the Tecnai Spirit TEM allows contamination-free cryo observation of frozen hydrated samples.

Videos


Tomographic reconstruction of negative stain preparation of rota virus
Volume rendering of negative stain preparation of rota virus
Human immunodeficiency virus
(HIV)

 

Images


Pox virus in Skin Tissue
Courtesy: Prof. Norbert Bannert, Robert-Koch Institute, Berlin
Tokuyasu cryo-section of HepG2 cells, labeled for TGN 46.
Sample courtesy: Dr. Dagmar Zeuschner, Department of Cell Biology, Utrecht, The Netherlands
Tecnai Spirit with 2K Eagle camera
Rota virus (Normal 2D image)
Courtesy of Cynthia Goldsmith, Center for Disease Control, Atlanta, USA
 

Bottom
Middle
Top
Three slices at different heights through 3D tomographic volume of negatively stained rota virus.
Courtesy of Cynthia Goldsmith, Center for Disease Control, Atlanta, USA
 

2 x 2 photomontage of positively stained renal biopsy section.
Image courtesy of Dr. Ito, Yorkhill Hospital, Glasgow, UK
Unstained flight muscles of Drosophila Melanogaster imaged at 80 kV
Ultrathin section of Nerve tissue
 

H1N1 virus.
Courtesy of Cynthia Goldsmith, Center for Disease Control, Atlanta, USA
    
 
Cryo TEM Examples:
 

Cow pea mosaic virus recorded on a 2K Eagle camera at 2 µm under focus
Dual-axis reconstruction of kidney biopsy. Sample preparation: high pressure frozen (HPF), freeze substituted (Acetone/OsO4), Epon embedded, ~250 nm section, no post section staining. Tilt range +/- 65°, Saxton scheme, Weighted Back Projection (WBP) reconstruction. Dual-axis merged in Fourier space of 0° and 90° rotated single axis reconstructions. Images acquired on a Tecnai Spirit BioTWIN with full 2k x 2k CCD camera at 4800x magnification. The tilted images were binned by a factor of 2 before reconstruction.		  
Cow Pea Mosaic Virus Tomogram

Xplore3D™
Xplore3D tomography software provides a fast, easy, complete solution for dual- and single-axis electron tomography (ET) using FEI's Titan™ or Tecnai™ transmission electron microscopes. Similar in concept to techniques used to examine organs and other large structures in clinical medicine (e.g., CAT scanners), ET creates accurate, detailed, three dimensional models of intricate biological structures at the sub cellular and molecular scale — from the 3D organization of membranes and organelles down to the molecular configuration of individual proteins and protein complexes.

Key Benefits

  • Complete solution for 3D tomographic acquisition, reconstruction and visualization
  • Advanced capabilities include batch acquisition, dual-axis tomography, low-dose imaging, STEM tomography, energy filtering, and hardware acceleration for reconstruction
  • Batch scheduling permits unattended overnight data acquisition from multiple grid positions
  • Dual-axis tomography provides precise guided specimen repositioning to automatically acquire tomography tilt series images from an initial tilt axis and a second orthogonal tilt axis after sample rotation
  • Advanced reconstruction techniques include weighted back-projection, ART, and SIRT
  • Dedicated GPU hardware in Xplore3D Xpress dramatically accelerates reconstruction
  • Job scheduler in Xplore3D Xpress server enables multi-user remote reconstruction

"Xplore3D has proven to be a highly robust environment and a complete solution for the 3D image acquisition, reconstruction and visualization of biological systems. It supports not only TEM tomography, but also the newer techniques - such as STEM and HAADF-STEM tomography. FEI's training and educational workshops, as well as their long-term commitment for support, make Xplore3D a valuable investment."

Professor Bram Koster
Leiden University Medical Center

Vitrobot Mark IV - cryo sample preparation robotVitrobot™ Mark IV
The Vitrobot vitrification robot is a cryo specimen preparation unit that completely automates the vitrification process to provide fast, easy, reproducible sample preparation – the first step in obtaining high quality images and repeatable experimental results. Vitrification cools the sample so rapidly that water molecules do not have time to crystallize, forming instead an amorphous solid that does little or no damage to the sample structure. The Vitrobot provides precise but flexible control of all critical parameters in the plunge-freezing process. The enclosed process chamber allows careful control of environmental variables, such as temperature and prevents the cooling and concentration artifacts often associated with 'open space' freezing methods. Sophisticated automation guarantees high quality, reproducible processing and high sample throughput.

Key Benefits

  • Fully automated, reproducible vitrification of aqueous suspensions
  • Precise control of critical process parameters
  • Enclosed process chamber
  • High sample throughput
  • Easy and flexible user interface
  • Semi-automated grid transfer

"Vitrification used to be an art form and only very few people in my group were capable of producing useful specimens. Since we got the Vitrobot, everybody is now able to reproducibly make perfect samples. The Vitrobot truly changed our life."

Professor Thomas Walz,
Harvard Medical School


Discovery of a new RNA-containing nuclear structure in UVC-induced apoptotic cells by integrated laser electron microscopy
Karreman, M.A.; Agronskaia, A.V.; Verkleij, A.J.; Cremers, F.F.; Gerritsen, H.C.; Humbel, B.M.
Electron Microscopy and Structure Analysis, Cellular Architecture and Dynamics, Utrecht University, Padualaan 8, NL-3584 CH Utrecht, The Netherlands
Biol. Cell2009, 101(5), 287-99
[ PubMed Abstract | Article Locator ]

Tannic acid-mediated osmium impregnation after freeze-substitution: a strategy to enhance membrane contrast for electron tomography
Jimenez, N.; Vocking, K.; van Donselaar, E.G.; Humbel, B.M.; Post, J.A.; Verkleij, A.J. (author email: N.JimenezGil@uu.nl)
Department of Cellular Architecture and Dynamics, Institute of Biomembranes, Utrecht University, Padualaan 8, 3584 CH Utrecht, The Netherlands
J. Struct. Biol.2009, 166(1), 103-6
[ PubMed Abstract | Article Locator ]

Integrated fluorescence and transmission electron microscopy
Agronskaia, A.V.; Valentijn, J.A.; van Driel, L.F.; Schneijdenberg, C.T.; Humbel, B.M.; van Bergen En Henegouwen, P.M.; Verkleij, A.J.; Koster, A.J.; Gerritsen, H.C.
Molecular Biophysics, Department of Physics, Faculty of Science, Utrecht University, Princetonplein 1, 3584 CC Utrecht, The Netherlands
J. Struct. Biol.2008, 14(5), 375-9
[ PubMed Abstract | Article Locator ]

Fluorescent labeling of resin-embedded sections for correlative electron microscopy using tomography-based contrast enhancement
van Driel, L.F.; Knoops, K.; Koster, A.J.; Valentijn, J.A. (author email: L.van_Driel@lumc.nl)
Department of Molecular Cell Biology, Section Electron Microscopy, Leiden University Medical Center, Leiden, The Netherlands
J. Struct. Biol.2008, 161(3), 372-83
[ PubMed Abstract | Article Locator ]

Polymorphic assemblies and crystalline arrays of lens tetraspanin MP20
Gonen, T.; Hite, R.K.; Cheng, Y.; Petre, B.M.; Kistler, J.; Walz, T. (author email: tgonen@u.washington.edu)
School of Biological Sciences, University of Auckland, Auckland, New Zealand
J. Mol. Biol.2008, 376(2), 380-92
[ PubMed Abstract | Article Locator ]

Direct visualization of Escherichia coli chemotaxis receptor arrays using cryo-electron microscopy
Zhang, P.; Khursigara, C.M.; Hartnell, L.M.; Subramaniam, S.
Laboratory of Cell Biology, Center for Cancer Research, National Cancer Institute, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD 20892, USA
Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. U.S.A.2007, 104(10), 3777-81
[ PubMed Abstract | Article Locator ]

Conical tomography of freeze-fracture replicas: a method for the study of integral membrane proteins inserted in phospholipid bilayers
Lanzavecchia, S.; Cantele, F.; Bellon, P.L.; Zampighi, L.; Kreman, M.; Wright, E.; Zampighi, G.A. (author email: salvatore.lanzavecchia@unimi.it)
Dipartimento di Chimica Strutturale, Università di Milano, Italy
J. Struct. Biol.2005, 149(1), 87-98
[ PubMed Abstract | Article Locator ]

The primary study on the detection of sterigmatocystin by biologic enzyme electrode modified with the multiwall carbon nanotubes
Yao, D.S.; Wen, S.M.; Liu, D.L.; Xie, C.F.; Bai, Y.; Ran, Y.H.
Life Science and Technology College, Ji-nan University, Guangzhou 510632, China
Sheng Wu Gong Cheng Xue Bao2005, 20(4), 601-6
[ PubMed Abstract ]

Tryptophan deficiency arrests chromatin breakdown in secondary lens fibers of rats
Vrensen, G.F.; van Marle, J.; Jonges, R.; Voorhout, W.; Breipohl, W.; Wegener, A.R. (author email: dr-gfjm-vrensen@hetnet.nl)
Department of Ophthalmology, Leiden University Medical Centre, Leiden, The Netherlands
Exp. Eye Res.2004, 78(3), 661-72
[ PubMed Abstract ]

SAS-4 is a C. elegans centriolar protein that controls centrosome size
Kirkham, M.; Muller-Reichert, T.; Oegema, K.; Grill, S.; Hyman, A.A.
Max Planck Institute of Molecular Cell Biology and Genetics, Pfotenhauerstrasse 108, 01307 Dresden, Germany
Cell2003, 112(4), 575-87
[ PubMed Abstract ]

Direct attachment of cell suspensions to high-pressure freezing specimen planchettes
Sawaguchi, A.; Yao, X.; Forte, J.G.; McDonald, K.L.
Department of Molecular and Cell Biology, University of California, Berkeley, CA 94720, USA
J Microsc2003, 212(Pt 1), 13-20
[ PubMed Abstract ]

High-pressure freezing in the study of animal pathogens
Monaghan, P.; Cook, H.; Hawes, P.; Simpson, J.; Tomley, F. (author email: paul.monaghan@bbsrc.ac.uk)
Institute for Animal Health, Ash Road, Pirbright, Woking, Surrey GU24 0NF, UK
J Microsc2003, 212(Pt 1), 62-70
[ PubMed Abstract ]

From tissue to cellular ultrastructure: closing the gap between micro- and nanostructural imaging
Biel, S.S.; Kawaschinski, K.; Wittern, K.P.; Hintze, U.; Wepf, R. (author email: stefan.biel@beiersdorf.com)
Analytical Microscopy, Beiersdorf AG, Unnastrasse 48, D-20245 Hamburg, Germany
J Microsc2003, 212(Pt 1), 91-9
[ PubMed Abstract ]

A new approach for high-pressure freezing of primary culture cells: the fine structure and stimulation-associated transformation of cultured rabbit gastric parietal cells
Sawaguchi, A.; McDonald, K.L.; Karvar, S.; Forte, J.G.
Department of Molecular and Cell Biology, University of California, 241 LSA, Berkeley, CA 94720-3200, USA
J Microsc2002, 208(Pt 3), 158-66
[ PubMed Abstract ]
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