Outreach Talk – Lok Sheemei

Use of cryo-electron microscopy to study viruses

Speaker:
Professor Lok Sheemei

Availability:
February 2023

Synopsis:
Cryoelectron microscopy is a method in structural biology where scientist can visualize and analyse biological samples in their native states to high resolution. In this method, biological samples are frozen and then their image are taken with a liquid nitrogen temperature electron microscope. Freezing allows the samples to remain as close as possible in their native state– unperturbed by drying or fixing with strong chemicals which are used in other more traditional methods. Modern electron microscopes allow us to obtain images at extremely high magnification of the individual frozen virus particles, and, with modern computational tools, reconstruct their three-dimensional shape to a near-atomic level of details. That allows us to study viruses and their interactions with other protein molecules to incredible details. These information will help us develop treatment against diseases.

For enquiries, please contact:

Mr Ambert Ang
Phone: +65  65162711
Email: DBS_outreach@nus.edu.sg