Good news for researchers working with high-resolution fluorescence microscopy: Biocompatible molecular rulers are available for the first time to calibrate the latest super-resolution microscopy methods.
Recent advancements in super-resolution microscopy now enable an optical resolution of a few nanometers, comparable to the size of cellular molecules. Yet, verifying this resolution on cellular components like multiprotein complexes has been challenging due to the absence of biomolecular reference systems capable of precise dye labeling at nanometer-scale distances.
Innovative Biomolecular Tools: PicoRulers
A team of scientists led by Dr. Gerti Beliu and Professor Markus Sauer from the Rudolf Virchow Centre – Center for Integrative and Translational Bioimaging at Julius-Maximilians-Universität (JMU) Würzburg in Bavaria, Germany, has now provided a turning point. In the journal Advanced Materials, they present novel biocompatible molecular rulers, the PicoRulers (Protein-based Imaging Calibration Optical Rulers).
Using genetic code expansion and click chemistry, the team has succeeded in constructing these customized molecular rulers. They can be used as precise biomolecular reference structures in fluorescence microscopy.
Technological Masterpiece: Precision at the Molecular Scale
The PicoRulers are based on the three-part protein PCNA (Proliferating Cell Nuclear Antigen), which plays a central role in DOI: 10.1002/adma.202310104