The molecular chaperone TF55. Assessment of symmetry

TF55-like factor from Sulfolobus solfataricus was purified to homogeneity and analyzed by electron microscopy and image analysis to determine the symmetries of these particles. Three different procedures were used to analyze the electron micrographs: (1) fuzzy-set based classification of the particles according to their rotational power spectra; (2) multivariate statistical analysis based on singular value decomposition; (3) circular harmonic analysis. Averages obtained from the three methods show unequivocally that the TF55-like complex presents a 9-fold symmetry.