3D electron microscopy of biological nanomachines: principles and applications

International audienceTransmission electron microscopy is a power-ful technique for studying the three-dimensional (3D) struc-ture of a wide range of biological specimens. Knowledge ofthis structure is crucial for fully understanding complexrelationships among macromolecular complexes and organ-elles in living cells. In this paper, we present the principlesand main application domains of 3D transmission electronmicroscopy in structural biology. Moreover, we survey current developments needed in this Weld, and discuss theclose relationship of 3D transmission electron microscopy withother experimental techniques aimed at obtaining structuraland dynamical information from the scale of whole livingcells to atomic structure of macromolecular complexes