The Analytical Scientist / Issues / 2020 / May / Image of the Month: X-Ray Vision
Spectroscopy Microscopy

Image of the Month: X-Ray Vision

By Lauren Robertson 05/25/2020 1 min read

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Using an X-ray-sensitive lanthanide-binding tag (LBT), scientists have demonstrated a new technique for imaging proteins in 3D at nanoscale resolution. By combining LBT with X-ray fluorescence, the method enables researchers to precisely locate proteins within individual cells, reaching the resolution of even the smallest subcellular organelles. In the above video, the technique reveals the concentrations of erbium (yellow) and zinc (red) in an E. coli cell expressing an LBT tag.

Credit: Brookhaven National Laboratory

References

  1. TW Victor et al., (2020). DOI: 10.1021/jacs.9b11571

About the Author(s)

Lauren Robertson

By the time I finished my degree in Microbiology I had come to one conclusion – I did not want to work in a lab. Instead, I decided to move to the south of Spain to teach English. After two brilliant years, I realized that I missed science, and what I really enjoyed was communicating scientific ideas – whether that be to four-year-olds or mature professionals. On returning to England I landed a role in science writing and found it combined my passions perfectly. Now at Texere, I get to hone these skills every day by writing about the latest research in an exciting, creative way.

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