HexAuFoil® cryo-EM support grids win a Microscopy Today Innovation Award

Last week, the Quantifoil team were awarded a Microscopy Today Innovation Award at the Microscopy & Microanalysis meeting in Cleveland! IMG20240802082627-rot

The annual awards celebrate new products and technologies that deliver better and faster methods in the field. This year, HexAuFoil^® cryo-EM specimen supports were recognized for their contributions to drug discovery and biomolecular structure determination.

Developed by Chris Russo and Katerina Naydenova at the MCR Laboratory of Molecular Biology (MRC LMB) in Cambridge, UK, HexAuFoil^® grids enable movement-free cryo-EM imaging, to enhance data quality and accelerate data collection. These grids are composed of a 400 mesh hexagonal TEM grid with a 30 nm gold support film, featuring 300 nm holes arranged in a dense hexagonal array. This design not only facilitates higher data collection rates but also improves throughput in resolving structures, making it ideal for single particle analysis.

One of the key advantages of HexAuFoil^® supports is their ability to produce a thinner and more consistent ice layer across the grid. With an average thickness of just 35 nm, compared to the typical 50-100 nm, and a significantly reduced variation in thickness to +/- 7 nm, these grids offer more consistent imaging with less need for refocusing. This results in better images every time.

For full details, read the press release here.

Congratulations to the Quantifoil team for this remarkable achievement!