The Roy J. Carver Charitable Trust of Muscatine has committed more than $3.5 million to transform biomolecular research at Iowa State University, making it a leader in advanced electron microscopy technology, the ISU Foundation announced. The grant will help advance the second phase of the Iowa State University Roy J. Carver Department of Biochemistry, Biophysics and Molecular Biology’s Initiative in Biomolecular Structure and enable the department to purchase a state-of-the-art cryo-transmission electron microscope equipped with a direct electron detector. Cryo-EM technology generates images of delicate biomolecules by bombarding frozen cellular, viral, nucleic acid or protein samples with electrons. The advanced technology can break down barriers in treating disease, engineer sophisticated biobased materials, and improve and sustain the food supply.