CryoEM at Centro Nacional de Biotecnologia - CSIC
Based at the premises of the Centro Nacional de Biotecnología (CNB), the CSIC cryo-electron microscopy (CryoEM) facility is a state-of-the-art core service offering several services: sample preparation, CryoEM image acquisition of unstained biological material for cryoEM single particle or cryoelectron tomography (cryoET), cryoelectron diffraction (microED) and cryocorrelative correlative light and electron microscopy (cryoCLEM).
Housed in the same building as the I2PC (Instruct Image Processing Centre) and part of Instruct-ES, the CryoEM facility hosts the following infrastructure: Specimen vitrification can be carried out using different devices such as FEI Vitrobot Mark IV, Leica EM CPC and Leica GP2 (for thin samples) and the Leica ICE high-pressure freezer (for thicker samples).
The facility houses two cryoelectron transmission microscopes: A 300 kV JEOL CryoARM equipped with an autoloader, a Gatan K3 direct electron detector and an Omega energy filter; and a 200 kV FEI Talos Arctica equipped with an autoloader, Falcon 4i direct electron detector and Ceta-D camera for electron diffraction. In addition, for sample characterisation the facility also hosts a standard 120 kV electron microscope JEOL JEM1400 for negative stained samples screening.
Finally, for cryoCLEM, the facility offers a Zeiss LS900 AiryScan cryoconfocal microscope equipped with a Linkam cryostage and a Zeiss CrossBeam 550 cryo-FIB-SEM microscope with a Leica cryostage.
CryoEM CNB-CSIC is currently available for remote access only due to COVID-19 restrictions. For information on the availability of specific technologies, view the Technology Availability List or contact support@instruct-eric.org. Please check here regularly for updates.
How to find us
By car: The University Campus is at the Km. 15 of the Colmenar road (M-607, Ctra. Colmenar Viejo, Km. 15). I2PC at the University Campus
By public transportation: You can reach the University Campus from Madrid either by bus (line 714 from Plaza de Castilla) or by train (line C4 and C10 from Atocha, Sol, Nuevos Ministerios or Chamartin railway stations).
You can find more information on the university website. In the map of the campus, the National Center of Biotechnology is located at the building number 18.
The facility will provide support and expertise to researchers using different techniques: Cryo-EM sample preparation and characterisation, Cryo-EM image acquisition of unstained biological material for cryo-EM single particle or cryoelectron tomography (cryo-ET), cryo-electron diffraction (microED) and cryocorrelative microscopy (cryo-CLEM). For many of these services, it is advisable to contact the Instruct Image Processing Centre for data processing support).
