title: Single-particle reconstruction of biological macromolecules in electron microscopy--30 years.
abstract: This essay gives the autho's personal account on the development of concepts underlying single-particle reconstruction, a technique in electron microscopy of macromolecular assemblies with a remarkable record of achievements as of late. The ribosome proved to be an ideal testing ground for the development of specimen preparation methods, cryo-EM techniques, and algorithms, with discoveries along the way as a rich reward. Increasingly, cryo-EM and single-particle reconstruction, in combination with classification techniques, is revealing dynamic information on functional molecular machines uninhibited by molecular contacts.
authors.affiliation: The Howard Hughes Medical Institute, Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biophysics, Columbia University, New York, NY, USA. jf2192@columbia.edu
authors.forename: Joachim
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Frank
mesh_terms: D007091:Image Processing, Computer-Assisted / Q000379:methods; D046911:Macromolecular Substances / Q000737:chemistry*; D008854:Microscopy, Electron / Q000379:methods*
chemical_list: D046911:Macromolecular Substances