 |
USA Edition | Today Is Sunday, May 19, 2013 |
|---|
What Matters Most
Matters Here
|
|---|
|
|
There is a higher calling — one that rests in an honored realm beyond the ordinary affairs of men.
It is a sacred place — having been erected in the traditions of freedom, and consecrated in the blood of those who have paid the ultimate price in pursuing journalism’s enduring quest for truth.
The Honorable House Of The Fourth Estate being that place in the American experience where the bells of freedom ring loud and clear so that all free men and women shall forever know what matters most to their livelihoods, families, communities and nation.
Credible - Responsible - Probative
Credibility is the foundation for all journalism no matter medium or method of transmission.Relevancy to our livelihoods, families, communities and nation are central to how we define news.
New media journalism is a servant of the people.
Being relevant demands that new media journalism stand-in for our viewers, readers, listeners or visitors and defend the public’s right to know what persons, institutions and governments are doing in the name of free and sovereign citizens.
Experienced and credible new media news services are tenured, qualified and full fledged members of the free press, second to none and equal to all.
Probity, accuracy, balance, provenance, and credibility in journalism are the currency of the realm in earning and maintaining public trust and confidence.
Robert Butche Publisher
| HHS Claims It’s Acting Against Unreasonable Health Insurance Rate Hikes | Browse All Content | Five Year Prison Sentences Handed Down In Nnanta Felix Ngari — Unique Medical Solutions Case | |||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Previous In Section | Browse National Institutes Of Health Section |
Next In Section |
Cryo-electron microscopy (cryo-EM) is a technique that allows scientists to image very small particles, like structures on the surface of viruses. This method has been useful in helping researchers understand how vaccines work.
Washington
NIH Scientists Identify Novel Approach To View Inner Workings Of Viruses
January 12, 2012
Since the discovery of the microscope, scientists have tried to visualize smaller and smaller structures to provide insights into the inner workings of human cells, bacteria and viruses. Now, researchers at the National Institute of Arthritis and Musculoskeletal and Skin Diseases (NIAMS), part of the National Institutes of Health, have developed a new way to see structures within viruses that were not clearly seen before. Their findings are reported in the Jan. 13 issue of Science.
Cryo-electron microscopy (cryo-EM) is a technique that allows scientists to image very small particles, like structures on the surface of viruses. This method has been useful in helping researchers understand how vaccines work. But, despite the success of cryo-EM, scientists have been unable to clearly visualize structures inside of viruses, because radiation is used to image them. “With lower doses of radiation, it is not possible to see inside the organism,” said lead author Dr. Alasdair Steven of the NIAMS Laboratory of Structural Biology Research. “However, higher doses of radiation damage the virus, destroying the very structures that we would like to view.”
Working in collaboration with the group of Dr. Lindsay Black at the University of Maryland Medical School, Baltimore, Steven and his team were able to turn the problem of radiation damage into an asset. Viruses, one of the simplest life forms, are made up of nucleic acids (DNA or RNA) and the proteins encoded by the nucleic acid instruction manual. The researchers realized that proteins inside the virus are more sensitive to damage than DNA.
In the background, cryo-electron micrographs of purified viruses with their inner structure bubbling from radiation damage. Overlaid, (left) 3D computer reconstruction of a virus’s outer shell and tail in gray, with the inner structure in magenta; (right) blow-up of the inner viral structure in magenta.
“We first used low doses of radiation and recorded images in which the inner structure of the virus was invisible,” said Steven. “Next, we used high doses of radiation, and found that the inner structure could be seen as a cylinder of bubbles.” While the inner structure was damaged, the team was able to superimpose the images, using three-dimensional computer reconstruction. As a result, they were able to clearly visualize the viral structure. The investigators call this technique bubblegram imaging.
Moving forward, the team members anticipate many uses of bubblegram imaging. Ideally, this technique will allow a better understanding of the inner workings of viruses, providing more opportunities for developing novel therapies. Beyond studying viral structure, cryo-EM could be used to visualize interactions of proteins with DNA in human cells. One exciting prospect lies in using this approach to visualize differences in cancer vs. non-cancer cells. “This new cryo-EM procedure renders previously invisible proteins visible and, thus, will provide new understanding of cell biology,” said Steven.
For more information on the NIAMS Laboratory of Structural Biology Research, visit http://www.niams.nih.gov/Research/Ongoing_Research/Branch_Lab/Structural_Biology/default.asp.
