DOI: 10.1177/002215540104900502. The Emergence of Electron Tomography as an Important Tool for Investigating Cellular Ultrastructure

The Emergence of Electron Tomography as an Important Tool for Investigating Cellular Ultrastructure

10.1177/002215540104900502

Crossref journal-article

SAGE Publications

Journal of Histochemistry & Cytochemistry (179)

Abstract

Electron tomography has emerged as the leading method for the study of three-dimensional (3D) ultrastructure in the 5–20-nm resolution range. It is ideally suited for studying cell organelles, subcellular assemblies and, in some cases, whole cells. Tomography occupies a place in 3D biological electron microscopy between the work now being done at near-atomic resolution on isolated macromolecules or 2D protein arrays and traditional serial-section reconstructions of whole cells and tissue specimens. Tomography complements serial-section reconstruction by providing higher resolution in the depth dimension, whereas serial-section reconstruction is better able to trace continuity over long distances throughout the depth of a cell. The two techniques can be combined with good results for favorable specimens. Tomography also complements 3D macromolecular studies by offering sufficient resolution to locate the macromolecular complexes in their cellular context. The technology has matured to the point at which application of electron tomography to specimens in plastic sections is routine, and new developments to overcome limitations due to beam exposure and specimen geometry promise to further improve its capabilities. In this review we give a brief description of the methodology and a summary of the new insights gained in a few representative applications. (J Histochem Cytochem 49:553–563, 2001)

Bibliography

McEwen, B. F., & Marko, M. (2001). The Emergence of Electron Tomography as an Important Tool for Investigating Cellular Ultrastructure. Journal of Histochemistry & Cytochemistry, 49(5), 553â563.

Authors 2

Bruce F. McEwen (first)
Michael Marko (additional)

References 76 Referenced 157

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Dates

Type	When
Created	14 years, 4 months ago (April 1, 2011, 3:17 a.m.)
Deposited	5 months, 2 weeks ago (March 1, 2025, 5:43 p.m.)
Indexed	3 months, 1 week ago (May 12, 2025, 8:46 a.m.)
Issued	24 years, 3 months ago (May 1, 2001)
Published	24 years, 3 months ago (May 1, 2001)
Published Online	24 years, 3 months ago (May 1, 2001)
Published Print	24 years, 3 months ago (May 1, 2001)

Funders 0

None

BibTeX

@article{McEwen_2001, title={The Emergence of Electron Tomography as an Important Tool for Investigating Cellular Ultrastructure}, volume={49}, ISSN={1551-5044}, url={http://dx.doi.org/10.1177/002215540104900502}, DOI={10.1177/002215540104900502}, number={5}, journal={Journal of Histochemistry & Cytochemistry}, publisher={SAGE Publications}, author={McEwen, Bruce F. and Marko, Michael}, year={2001}, month=may, pages={553–563} }

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  "abstract": "<jats:p> Electron tomography has emerged as the leading method for the study of three-dimensional (3D) ultrastructure in the 5\u201320-nm resolution range. It is ideally suited for studying cell organelles, subcellular assemblies and, in some cases, whole cells. Tomography occupies a place in 3D biological electron microscopy between the work now being done at near-atomic resolution on isolated macromolecules or 2D protein arrays and traditional serial-section reconstructions of whole cells and tissue specimens. Tomography complements serial-section reconstruction by providing higher resolution in the depth dimension, whereas serial-section reconstruction is better able to trace continuity over long distances throughout the depth of a cell. The two techniques can be combined with good results for favorable specimens. Tomography also complements 3D macromolecular studies by offering sufficient resolution to locate the macromolecular complexes in their cellular context. The technology has matured to the point at which application of electron tomography to specimens in plastic sections is routine, and new developments to overcome limitations due to beam exposure and specimen geometry promise to further improve its capabilities. In this review we give a brief description of the methodology and a summary of the new insights gained in a few representative applications. (J Histochem Cytochem 49:553\u2013563, 2001) </jats:p>",
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