Anyone interested in meeting with Dr Boesen can contact NCMM group leader Nikolina Sekulic (nikolina.sekulic@ncmm.uio.no) to arrange an appointment.
Title and abstract:
Cryo-EM of membrane proteins
During the past six years single particle analysis cryo-electron microscopy (cryo-EM) has been used to determine a wealth of membrane protein structures including ion channels, transporters and cell surface receptors. The breakthrough of cryo-EM was based on the development of new technologies and algorithms and the field is still progressing at an incredible speed. Structures of the relatively small and medically important GPCR:G-protein complexes and large and impressive mitochondrial membrane protein complexes are noticeable examples illustrating that cryo-EM is an important if not the primary method for studying membrane protein structures. For any high resolution structural biology method a good sample preparation is the most crucial single parameter for a successful result. A number of sample preparation methods including reconstitutions in nanodisc technologies have been employed for membrane protein single particle analysis using cryo-EM and I will address the pros and cons and potential pitfalls of the major methods in the field. I will go through examples of membrane protein structures determined in Aarhus and discuss new directions in cryo-EM methods that holds great promise for a new revolution in the field waiting just around the corner.