title: Generalized single-particle cryo-EM--a historical perspective.
abstract: This is a brief account of the earlier history of single-particle cryo-EM of biological molecules lacking internal symmetry, which goes back to the mid-seventies. The emphasis of this review is on the mathematical concepts and computational approaches. It is written as the field experiences a turning point in the wake of the introduction of digital cameras capable of single electron counting, and near-atomic resolution can be reached even for smaller molecules.
authors.affiliation: HHMI, Department of Biochemistry and Molecular Biophysics, Columbia University, New York, NY, USA Department of Biological Sciences, Columbia University, New York, NY, USA jf2192@cumc.columbia.edu.
authors.forename: Joachim
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Frank
mesh_terms: D000465:Algorithms; D020285:Cryoelectron Microscopy / Q000266:history / Q000295:instrumentation* / Q000379:methods* / Q000639:trends; D004583:Electrons; D049673:History, 20th Century; D021621:Imaging, Three-Dimensional / Q000295:instrumentation* / Q000379:methods*; D008968:Molecular Conformation
keywords: 3D reconstruction; image processing; molecular structure; ribosome