This is a collection of science art and artsy science created, or observed, by members of the lab.
Images are subject to a CC-BY-SA 4.0 licence. The artist mentioned in the caption should be credited on reuse.

Gas vesicles

Strange perspectives
Gas vesicles are unusual protein complexes – they form an interface between a aqueous and a gas phase to create gas bubbles in the cytosol, which allows microbes to float. On the cover: An unusual perspective to look at a cryo-EM structure. The rendering shows the cryo-EM density of gas vesicles viewed from the interior gas space. The same cryo-EM density is deposited in the electron microscopy database (EMDB-14340). The viewing direction highlights the peculiar features of gas vesicles first observed by the presented article such as the smooth water-repellent interior and the pores enabling exchange of gaseous molecules with the outside.

Image credit: Stefan Huber CC-BY-SA 4.0

Gas vesicle submarines
Gas vesicles are protein megacomplexes filled with gas to allow aquatic bacteria to control their vertical position in the water column. On the cover: Detailed model of a complete gas vesicle. The model is deposited and made publicly available in a data repository. Besides the striking geometry of the structure, the cover highlights the function of gas vesicles as buoyancy devices (filled with yellow gas) and the gas-permeability of the wall (with yellow gas molecules diffusing around).

Image credit: Stefan Huber CC-BY-SA 4.0