title: Structure determination of channel and transport proteins by high-resolution microscopy techniques.
abstract: High-resolution microscopy techniques provide a plethora of information on biological structures from the cellular level down to the molecular level. In this review, we present the unique capabilities of transmission electron and atomic force microscopy to assess the structure, oligomeric state, function and dynamics of channel and transport proteins in their native environment, the lipid bilayer. Most importantly, membrane proteins can be visualized in the frozen-hydrated state and in buffer solution by cryo-transmission electron and atomic force microscopy, respectively. We also illustrate the potential of the scintillation proximity assay to study substrate binding of detergent-solubilized transporters prior to crystallization and structural characterization.
authors.affiliation: Institute of Biochemistry and Molecular Medicine, and NCCR TransCure, University of Bern, Bühlstrasse 28, Bern, Switzerland.
authors.forename: Marcel
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Meury
authors.forename: Daniel
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Harder
authors.forename: Zöhre
authors.initials: Z
authors.lastname: Ucurum
authors.forename: Rajendra
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Boggavarapu
authors.forename: Jean-Marc
authors.initials: JM
authors.lastname: Jeckelmann
authors.forename: Dimitrios
authors.initials: D
authors.lastname: Fotiadis
mesh_terms: D008565:Membrane Proteins / Q000737:chemistry*; D018625:Microscopy, Atomic Force; D021381:Protein Transport
chemical_list: D008565:Membrane Proteins