[3dem] Prepare Your In Situ Cryo-ET Sample with SLICK: A Sandwich-LIke Culturing Kit

[Qiuye Li]

Dear all,
Thank you all for your interest! I have created a form (
https://urldefense.com/v3/__https://forms.gle/hFzn6UJRKNzy4Mg5A__;!!Mih3wA!B5wJwqvu5PrropZNPBQ-TLU7NfwBTjChpuAm6nO42eYOedXXZXqQ0525_KzuVPTSuve_YNYKC6OggJdqhA$ ) to direct you to the best way of
delivery. Please feel free to fill in the form if you are interested in
testing SLICK.

Best,
Qiuye

On Tue, Mar 11, 2025 at 3:42 PM Qiuye Li <qxl112 at case.edu> wrote:

> Dear all,
> We are excited to present our recent work, SLICK: A *S*andwich-*LI*ke *C*ulturing
> *K*it for *in situ* Cryo-ET Sample Preparation (
> https://urldefense.com/v3/__https://www.biorxiv.org/content/10.1101/2025.02.14.638381v1.full__;!!Mih3wA!B5wJwqvu5PrropZNPBQ-TLU7NfwBTjChpuAm6nO42eYOedXXZXqQ0525_KzuVPTSuve_YNYKC6Mc3RjIhw$ ). Great
> sample preparation is the foundation for successful *in situ* cryo-ET
> studies. SLICK is a device that facilitates culturing of adherent cells on
> EM grids. It has a couple of advantages compared to current practices:
> 1) Simplified sample preparation process. The sandwich design minimizes
> the moving, floating, and flipping of grids in culture dishes. In our test,
> users without prior *in situ* cryo-ET experience can easily prepare
> adherent cells on EM grids using SLICK on the first try.
> 2) Significantly improved grid integrity. With SLICK, one only needs to
> handle EM grids with tweezers as few as two times: 1) when picking up grids
> from the package; 2) when picking up the grids with cells for plunge
> freezing. This significantly reduced grid bending and foil breaking.
> 3) High-throughput capability. A SLICK can prepare 12 EM grids in a 35 mm
> dish. For those interested in even higher throughput, this number scales up
> very well with dish size.
> 4) Versatility. The kit contains a 3D-printed base, and all other
> components are easily available in a cell biology lab. The modular design
> allows the base to be configured to various shapes and capacities. The kit
> should be compatible with existing equipment and protocols. In our test, it
> can be used to culture low-density primary hippocampus neurons with the
> help of feeder layers.
>
> We believe SLICK will be particularly helpful for those who want to
> explore the power of cryo-ET, but hesitate to start cell culturing. Current
> practitioners will also greatly benefit from the improved sample quality
> and throughput.
> The design is still being actively improved and modified. Please feel free
> to contact me (qxl112 at case.edu) if you would like a sample of SLICK, or
> would like to have a copy of the model files. Questions, feedback,
> recommendations, and new feature requests are always welcome!
>
> Best regards,
> Qiuye
>
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