Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jun 13, 2026
10:31
Universal Molecular Retention with 11-Fold Expansion Microscopy
Published on: October 6, 2023
Thousandfold Expansion Microscopy
Helena Hu1, Donatus Krah2, Antonios Ntolkeras2
1Department of Biological Engineering, MIT, Cambridge, MA 02139.
Biorxiv : the Preprint Server for Biology
|June 12, 2026
Summary
Thousandfold expansion microscopy (1000ExM) images individual protein residues by anchoring and expanding them. This novel technique achieves sub-nanometer precision, enabling detailed protein visualization.
Area of Science:
- Biochemistry
- Microscopy
- Materials Science
Background:
- Proteins are essential biological macromolecules composed of amino acid residues.
- Current imaging techniques face limitations in resolving individual amino acid residues within proteins.
Purpose of the Study:
- To develop a novel microscopy technique for visualizing individual protein residues.
- To achieve sub-nanometer precision in imaging protein structures.
Main Methods:
- Anchoring protein side chains to a swellable polymer.
- Cleaving backbone amide bonds to separate residues.
- Utilizing a four-network interpenetrating hydrogel architecture for successive expansion (1000ExM).
Main Results:
- Achieved successive expansion up to >1000-fold (one billion-fold in volume).
- Maintained protein and peptide structures across expansion factors.
- Demonstrated resolution of adjacent amino acid residues, achieving sub-nanometer precision.
Conclusions:
- 1000ExM enables visualization of individual protein residues with unprecedented precision.
- This technique offers potential for wide application in protein visualization and identification.
- 1000ExM may be applicable in intact cells and tissues.
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