Molecular cryo-electron tomography of vitreous tissue sections: current challenges

Electron tomography of vitreous tissue sections (tissue TOVIS) allows the study of the three-dimensional structure of molecular complexes in a near-native cellular context. Its usage is, however, limited by an unfortunate combination of noisy and incomplete data, by a technically demanding sample preparation procedure, and by a disposition for specimen degradation during data collection. Here we outline some major challenges as experienced from the application of TOVIS to human skin. We further consider a number of practical measures as well as theoretical approaches for its future development.