Three-dimensional deconvolution processing for STEM cryotomography

Barnali Waugh, Sharon G. Wolf, Deborah Fass, Eric Branlund, Zvi Kam, John W. Sedat, Michael Elbaum

Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

Abstract

The complex environment of biological cells and tissues has motivated development of three-dimensional (3D) imaging in both light and electron microscopies. To this end, one of the primary tools in fluorescence microscopy is that of computational deconvolution. Wide-field fluorescence images are often corrupted by haze due to out-of-focus light, i.e., to cross-talk between different object planes as represented in the 3D image. Using prior understanding of the image formation mechanism, it is possible to suppress the cross-talk and reassign the unfocused light to its proper source post facto. Electron tomography based on tilted projections also exhibits a cross-talk between distant planes due to the discrete angular sampling and limited tilt range. By use of a suitably synthesized 3D point spread function, we show here that deconvolution leads to similar improvements in volume data reconstructed from cryoscanning transmission electron tomography (CSTET), namely a dramatic in-plane noise reduction and improved representation of features in the axial dimension. Contrast enhancement is demonstrated first with colloidal gold particles and then in representative cryotomograms of intact cells. Deconvolution of CSTET data collected from the periphery of an intact nucleus revealed partially condensed, extended structures in interphase chromatin.

Original languageEnglish
Pages (from-to)27374-27380
Number of pages7
JournalProceedings of the National Academy of Sciences of the United States of America
Volume117
Issue number44
Early online date19 Oct 2020
DOIs
StatePublished - 3 Nov 2020

All Science Journal Classification (ASJC) codes

  • General

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