Cryo-Electron Microscopy at the Biological Faculty of Moscow State University

The paper reports an example of a successful upgrade of the JEOL JEM-2100 analytical transmission electron microscope to a low-resolution cryo-electron microscope, which can be used to optimize sample preparation and to assess preparation quality. As a result of the instrument upgrade, it is possible to obtain subnanometer resolution of protein molecule reconstructions (within 8 Å). The role of graphene and amorphous carbon substrates in preventing the effect of preferential orientation of protein particles in a frozen sample is discussed.