The growth of ordered two-dimensional sheets of 70 S ribosomes from Bacillus stearothermophilus

Well ordered two-dimensional sheets of intact 70 S ribosomes from Bacillus stearothermophilus have been obtained in vitro using salt-alcohol mixtures. These sheets consist of relatively small unit cells with dimensions of 200 +/- 20 A and 400 +/- 30 A. Diffraction patterns of electron micrographs of these sheets stained with uranyl acetate contain features to 42 A resolution.