Congratulations to our joint postdoc, Julia Mahamid (based in the Baumeister lab), and colleagues on their recent publication in Science! This work utilizes cutting-edge developments in cryo-electron tomography to produce detailed 3D images of the nuclear periphery, revealing new information about its molecular organization.
Visualizing the molecular sociology at the HeLa cell nuclear periphery. Mahamid J, Pfeffer S, Schaffer M, Villa E, Danev R, Cuellar LK, Förster F, Hyman AA, Plitzko JM, Baumeister W. Science. 2016 Feb; 351(6276):969-72.
Abstract: The molecular organization of eukaryotic nuclear volumes remains largely unexplored. Here we combined recent developments in cryo-electron tomography (cryo-ET) to produce three-dimensional snapshots of the HeLa cell nuclear periphery. Subtomogram averaging and classification of ribosomes revealed the native structure and organization of the cytoplasmic translation machinery. Analysis of a large dynamic structure-the nuclear pore complex-revealed variations detectable at the level of individual complexes. Cryo-ET was used to visualize previously elusive structures, such as nucleosome chains and the filaments of the nuclear lamina, in situ. Elucidation of the lamina structure provides insight into its contribution to metazoan nuclear stiffness.