The Nobel Prize in chemistry this year (2017 ) was awarded for the discovery of a technique called Cryo-Electron Microscopy. It enabled scientists to determine the structure of biomolecules like proteins, DNA and RNA in vast detail. Three scientists Joachim Frank(Columbia University,New York, USA), Richard Henderson(MRC Lboratory of Molecular Biology,Cambridge,UK) , Jacques Dubochet(University of Lausanne, Switzerland) has won this prize Jointly. This technique began with the finding of Joachim Frank between 1975 and 1986 when he develop the method to merge 2- D images of an electron microgram to obtain 3D images and analyse them using computer software. Electron microscopy was known since 1931 and was first used to find ultra structure of insect mouth parts , Antennas and plant and animal cell membranes . In this method a beam of electrons is used to focus on object. This beam of electrons hits the object and gets defected , which provides a way to visualise the structure of the object at Higher magnification of up to 1 million times. This can be understood by an example. When a person stands in the path of light, it hits the person gets defected and forms the shadow on the wall. The shadow can help to determine the shape of a person . Electron microscopy works in a similar manner but can provide images at a very high magnification . But electron microscopy was never previously used for nanoscale molecules like proteins. In 1990 Richard Henderson, for the first time used an electron microscope to see the ultrastructure of protein. But this method had a fundamental problem. The Protein was exposed to vacuum during electron microscopy which type the sample. Hence, Proteins in the natural state could not be visualised by this method. A significant improvements came next when Jacques Dubochet succeeded in cooling the proteins and other biomolecules using liquid nitrogen before imaging them under electron microscope. Liquid Nitrogen had -196 degree Celsius that phases the sample very rapidly. Instant cooling does not structure of biomolecules. The benefit of this method is that proteins and other biomolecules can be studied in real time. Well they are performing their functions in solution. They have taken scientists to a new era making it easier for scientists to capture 3D live images of biomolecules which will help to make new discoveries in the field of Biochemistry and medicine.
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