Electrospray sample injection for single-particle imaging with x-ray lasers
Journal article, 2019
The possibility of imaging single proteins constitutes an exciting challenge for x-ray lasers. Despite encouraging results on large particles, imaging small particles has proven to be difficult for two reasons: not quite high enough pulse intensity from currently available x-ray lasers and, as we demonstrate here, contamination of the aerosolized molecules by nonvolatile contaminants in the solution. The amount of contamination on the sample depends on the initial droplet size during aerosolization. Here, we show that, with our electrospray injector, we can decrease the size of aerosol droplets and demonstrate virtually contaminant-free sample delivery of organelles, small virions, and proteins. The results presented here, together with the increased performance of next-generation x-ray lasers, constitute an important stepping stone toward the ultimate goal of protein structure determination from imaging at room temperature and high temporal resolution.
Author
Johan Bielecki
European XFEL
Uppsala University
Max F. Hantke
Refeyn Ltd.
University of Oxford
Uppsala University
Benedikt J. Daurer
Uppsala University
NUS Centre for Bioimaging Sciences
Hemanth K.N. Reddy
Uppsala University
Dirk Hasse
Uppsala University
Daniel S.D. Larsson
Uppsala University
Laura H. Gunn
Uppsala University
Martin Svenda
AlbaNova University Center
Uppsala University
Anna Munke
Uppsala University
Jonas A. Sellberg
AlbaNova University Center
Uppsala University
Leonie Flueckiger
La Trobe University
Alberto Pietrini
Uppsala University
Carl Nettelblad
Uppsala University
Ida Lundholm
Uppsala University
Gunilla Carlsson
Uppsala University
Kenta Okamoto
Uppsala University
N. Timneanu
Uppsala University
Daniel Westphal
Uppsala University
Olena Kulyk
Czech Academy of Sciences
Akifumi Higashiura
Osaka University
Hiroshima University
Gijs Van Der Schot
Bijvoet Center for Biomolecular Research
Uppsala University
Ne Te Duane Loh
NUS Centre for Bioimaging Sciences
National University of Singapore (NUS)
Taylor E. Wysong
Stanford University
Christoph Bostedt
Argonne National Laboratory
Northwestern University
Tais Gorkhover
Stanford University
Bianca Iwan
University of Hanover
Stanford University
M. Marvin Seibert
Uppsala University
Timur Osipov
Stanford University
Peter Walter
Stanford University
Philip Hart
Stanford University
Max Bucher
Argonne National Laboratory
Anatoli Ulmer
Technische Universität Berlin
Dipanwita Ray
Stanford University
Gabriella Carini
Brookhaven National Laboratory
Stanford University
Ken Ferguson
Stanford University
Inger Andersson
Uppsala University
Jakob Andreasson
Chalmers, Physics, Materials Physics
Czech Academy of Sciences
Janos Hajdu
Czech Academy of Sciences
Uppsala University
Filipe R.N.C. Maia
Uppsala University
Lawrence Berkeley National Laboratory
Science advances
2375-2548 (eISSN)
Vol. 5 5 eaav8801Subject Categories
Analytical Chemistry
Atom and Molecular Physics and Optics
Other Physics Topics
DOI
10.1126/sciadv.aav8801