A cost-effective 200 kV cryo-EM core facility for high resolution single particle analysis

Objectives: To establish a sustainable 200 kV cryo-EM core facility for the Northern Rocky Mountain region with high resolution single particle capabilities. Methods: With modest funding from the NSF, The Murdock Charitable Trust and Montana State University, we remodeled space and installed a 200 kV Talos Arctica with Gatan K3 camera, supporting software and computational resources, and a refurbished T-12 Spirit for negative stain work. The facility was organized as a university core facility. Results: Data from low symmetry particles greater than 100 kDa routinely give structures at better than 3 Å resolution, with several high symmetry structures going past 2 Å. The facility is now serving academic and industrial users across the Northern Rocky Mountain region, and beyond. Conclusions: Smaller Carnegie R1 research intensive universities are well served by 200 kV microscopes for single particle work. These microscopes approach the capabilities of more expensive 300 kV instruments with their ability to produce high resolution single particle structures, and can do so at significant cost savings, contributing to sustainable core facilities.