The modular carbohydrate-active enzyme belonging to glycoside hydrolase family 30 (GH30) from Clostridium thermocellum (CtXynGH30) is a cellulosomal protein which plays an important role in plant cell-wall degradation. The full-length CtXynGH30 contains an N-terminal catalytic module (Xyn30A) followed by a family 6 carbohydrate-binding module (CBM6) and a dockerin at the C-terminus. The recombinant protein has a molecular mass of 45 kDa. Preliminary structural characterization was carried out on Xyn30A crystallized in different conditions. All tested crystals belonged to space group P1 with one molecule in the asymmetric unit. Molecular replacement has been used to solve the Xyn30A structure.

The Escherichia coli cyclic AMP receptor protein (CRP) is a prokaryotic global transcription activator protein that controls the expression of many different genes. Wild-type CRP can bind to special DNA sequences in the presence of cAMP. The substitution of Asp53 by His results in the CRP* phenotype, which does not require exogenous cAMP. In the present study, the D53H CRP mutant was overexpressed, purified and crystallized. cAMP-free D53H CRP crystals were obtained and diffracted to a resolution of 2.9 Å. Based on the systematic absences of the crystals, the space group is likely to be P2(1)2(1)2(1), with unit-cell parameters a = 76.66, b = 152.14, c = 176.11 Å. The asymmetric unit was confirmed to contain four protein dimers, with a Matthews coefficient of 2.71 Å(3) Da(-1) and a solvent content of 54.68%.

Pseudomonas aeruginosa is an opportunistic pathogen and one of the major model organisms for the study of chemotaxis. The bacterium harbours 26 genes encoding chemoreceptors, most of which have not been annotated with a function. The paralogous chemoreceptors PctA and PctB (Pseudomonas chemotactic transducer A and B) were found to mediate chemotaxis towards L-amino acids. However, the ligand spectrum of the receptors is quite different since the recombinant ligand-binding region (LBR) of PctA binds 17 different L-amino acids whereas that of PctB recognizes only five. To determine the molecular basis underlying this ligand specificity, PctA-LBR and PctB-LBR have been purified and crystals have been produced after pre-incubation with L-Ile and L-Arg, respectively. Initial crystallization conditions have been identified by the counter-diffusion method and X-ray data have been collected at 2.5 Å (PctA-LBR bound to L-Ile) and 3.14 Å (PctB-LBR bound to L-Arg) resolution. Crystals belonged to space groups P2(1)2(1)2(1) and P3(1)2(1), with unit-cell parameters a = 72.2, b = 78.5, c = 116.6 Å and a = b = 111.6, c = 117.4, respectively, for PctA-LBR and PctB-LBR. Molecular-replacement methods will be pursued for structural determination.

Aspartate transcarbamoylase (ATCase) catalyzes the synthesis of N-carbamoyl-L-aspartate from carbamoyl phosphate and aspartate in the second step of the de novo biosynthesis of pyrimidines. In prokaryotes, the first three activities of the pathway, namely carbamoyl phosphate synthetase (CPSase), ATCase and dihydroorotase (DHOase), are encoded as distinct proteins that function independently or in noncovalent association. In animals, CPSase, ATCase and DHOase are part of a 243 kDa multifunctional polypeptide named CAD. Up-regulation of CAD is essential for normal and tumour cell proliferation. Although the structures of numerous prokaryotic ATCases have been determined, there is no structural information about any eukaryotic ATCase. In fact, the only detailed structural information about CAD is that it self-assembles into hexamers and trimers through interactions of the ATCase domains. Here, the expression, purification and crystallization of the ATCase domain of human CAD is reported. The recombinant protein, which was expressed in bacteria and purified with good yield, formed homotrimers in solution. Crystallization experiments both in the absence and in the presence of the inhibitor PALA yielded small crystals that diffracted X-rays to 2.1 Å resolution using synchrotron radiation. The crystals appeared to belong to the hexagonal space group P6(3)22, and Matthews coefficient calculation indicated the presence of one ATCase subunit per asymmetric unit, with a solvent content of 48%. However, analysis of the intensity statistics suggests a special case of the P21 lattice with pseudo-symmetry and possibly twinning.

The last enzyme in the arginine-biosynthesis pathway, argininosuccinate lyase, from Mycobacterium tuberculosis has been cloned, expressed, purified and crystallized, and preliminary X-ray studies have been carried out on the crystals. The His-tagged tetrameric enzyme with a subunit molecular weight of 50.9 kDa crystallized with two tetramers in the asymmetric unit of the orthorhombic unit cell, space group P2(1)2(1)2(1). Molecular-replacement calculations and self-rotation calculations confirmed the space group and the tetrameric nature of the molecule.

The response-regulatory protein LytR belongs to a family of transcription factors involved in the regulation of important virulence factors in pathogenic bacteria. The protein consists of a receiver domain and an effector domain, which play an important role in controlled cell death and lysis. The LytR receiver domain (LytR(N)) has been overexpressed, purified and crystallized using the sitting-drop and hanging-drop vapour-diffusion methods. The crystals grew as needles, with unit-cell parameters a = b = 84.82, c = 157.3 Å, α = β = 90, γ = 120°. LytR(N) crystallized in space group P6122 and the crystals diffracted to a maximum resolution of 2.34 Å. Based on the Matthews coefficient (V(M) = 5.44 Å(3) Da(-1)), one molecule is estimated to be present in the asymmetric unit.

The (R)-selective amine transaminase from Aspergillus fumigatus was expressed in Escherichia coli and purified to homogeneity. Bright yellow crystals appeared while storing the concentrated solution in the refrigerator and belonged to space group C222(1). X-ray diffraction data were collected to 1.27 Å resolution, as well as an anomalous data set to 1.84 Å resolution that was suitable for S-SAD phasing.

Tm-1, an inhibitor protein of Tomato mosaic virus RNA replication, contains two conserved domains: an uncharacterized domain at its N-terminus and a TIM-barrel-like domain at its C-terminus. The N-terminal domain of Tm-1 has an inhibitory activity and its three-dimensional structure has not been determined. Here, the crystallization and preliminary X-ray diffraction of the N-terminal domain of Tm-1 are reported. A three-wavelength MAD data set was collected from a selenomethionine-labelled crystal and processed to 2.7 Å resolution. The crystal belonged to the triclinic space group P1, with unit-cell parameters a = 77.97, b = 105.28, c = 110.62 Å, α = 94.6, β = 109.3, γ = 108.0°.

Endoglycosidase S (EndoS) is an enzyme secreted by Streptococcus pyogenes that specifically hydrolyzes the β-1,4-di-N-acetylchitobiose core glycan on immunoglobulin G (IgG) antibodies. One of the most common human pathogens and the cause of group A streptococcal infections, S. pyogenes secretes EndoS in order to evade the host immune system by rendering IgG effector mechanisms dysfunctional. On account of its specificity for IgG, EndoS has also been used extensively for chemoenzymatic synthesis of homogeneous IgG glycoprotein preparations and is being developed as a novel therapeutic for a wide range of autoimmune diseases. The structural basis of its enzymatic activity and substrate specificity, however, remains unknown. Here, the purification and crystallization of EndoS are reported. Using traditional hanging-drop and sitting-drop vapor-diffusion crystallization, crystals of EndoS were grown that diffracted to a maximum of 3.5 Å resolution but suffered from severe anisotropy, the data from which could only be reasonably processed to 7.5 Å resolution. When EndoS was crystallized by liquid-liquid diffusion, it was possible to grow crystals with a different space group to those obtained by vapor diffusion. Crystals of wild-type endoglycosidase and glycosynthase constructs of EndoS grown by liquid-liquid diffusion diffracted to 2.6 and 1.9 Å resolution, respectively, with a greatly diminished anisotropy. Despite extensive efforts, the failure to reproduce these liquid-liquid diffusion-grown crystals by vapor diffusion suggests that these crystallization methods each sample a distinct crystallization space.

The BRCA1 holoenzyme complex plays an important role in DNA damage repair. ABRAXAS is a newly discovered component of this complex and its C-terminal region directly binds to the BRCA1 BRCT domain. Single crystals of the BRCA1 BRCT-ABRAXAS complex grown by co-crystallization belonged to space group P4(1)2(1)2, with unit-cell parameters a = b = 187.18, c = 85.31 Å. Diffraction data were collected on the BM-14 beamline at the ESRF. Molecular-replacement calculations using Phaser led to three molecules in the asymmetric unit and a high solvent content of 76%.

Class B β-lactamases are known as metallo-β-lactamases (MBLs) and they hydrolyze most β-lactams, including carbapenems. IMP-18, an MBL cloned from Pseudomonas aeruginosa, was overexpressed, purified and crystallized by vapour diffusion for X-ray crystallographic analysis. Preliminary X-ray analysis showed that the crystal diffracted to 2.4 Å resolution and belonged to the tetragonal space group P4(1)2(1)2, with unit-cell parameters a = b = 120.77, c = 96.54 Å, α = β = γ = 90°, suggesting the presence of two molecules in the asymmetric unit.

CHAP(K) is the N-terminal cysteine, histidine-dependent amidohydrolase/peptidase domain (CHAP domain) of the Staphylococcus aureus bacteriophage K endolysin LysK. It is formed from the first 165 residues of LysK and functions by cleaving specific peptidoglycan peptide bonds, causing bacterial lysis. CHAP(K) can lyse S. aureus when applied exogenously, making it a good candidate for the treatment of multidrug-resistant Staphylococcus aureus infections. Here, the crystallization of CHAP(K) and the collection of native and derivative data to high resolution, which allowed structure solution, are reported. The structure may help to elucidate the mechanism of action and in the design of chimeric proteins or mutants with improved antibacterial activity.

The outbreak of Shiga toxin-producing Escherichia coli O104:H4 infection in Germany in 2011 was associated with significant mortality and morbidity owing to the progressive development of haemolytic-uraemic syndrome. The outbreak strain emerged recently as a result of horizontal transfer events leading to the acquisition of a number of virulence factors. Among them, aggregative adherence fimbriae type I (AAF/I) are considered to be particularly important since they are involved in the initial attachment of bacteria to the intestinal mucosa. Here, the crystallization and preliminary X-ray diffraction analysis of the major subunit of AAF/I, AggA, are reported. Crystallization of recombinant donor-strand complemented AggA was performed by the vapour-diffusion method. The crystals diffracted to 1.55 Å resolution and belonged to the orthorhombic space group C222(1), with unit-cell parameters a = 77.83, b = 80.17, c = 91.42 Å. Despite a low sulfur content of the protein [0.57%(w/w)], sufficiently accurate initial phases were derived from a sulfur SAD experiment.

One way that bacteria regulate the transcription of specific genes to adapt to environmental challenges is to use different σ factors that direct the RNA polymerase holoenzyme to distinct promoters. Unlike σ(70) RNA polymerase (RNAP), σ(54) RNAP is unable to initiate transcription without an activator: enhancer-binding protein (EBP). All EBPs contain one ATPase domain that belongs to the family of ATPases associated with various cellular activities (AAA+ ATPases). AAA+ ATPases use the energy of ATP hydrolysis to remodel different target macromolecules to perform distinct functions. These mechanochemical enzymes are known to form ring-shaped oligomers whose conformations strongly depend upon nucleotide status. Here, the crystallization of the AAA+ ATPase domain of an EBP from Aquifex aeolicus, NtrC1, in the presence of the non-hydrolyzable ATP analog ADP-BeFx is reported. X-ray diffraction data were collected from two crystals from two different protein fractions of the NtrC1 ATPase domain. Previously, this domain was co-crystallized with ADP and ATP, but the latter crystals were grown from the Walker B substitution variant E239A. Therefore, the new data sets are the first for a wild-type EBP ATPase domain co-crystallized with an ATP analog and they reveal a new crystal form. The resulting structure(s) will shed light on the mechanism of EBP-type transcription activators.

Coccidiosis in chickens is caused by the apicomplexan parasite Eimeria tenella and is thought to involve a role for a superfamily of more than 20 cysteine-rich surface antigen glycoproteins (SAGs) in host-parasite interactions. A representative member of the family, SAG19, has been overexpressed in Escherichia coli, purified and crystallized by the hanging-drop method of vapour diffusion using ammonium sulfate as the precipitant. Crystals of SAG19 diffracted to beyond 1.50 Å resolution and belonged to space group I4, with unit-cell parameters a = b = 108.2, c = 37.5 Å. Calculation of possible values of VM suggests that there is a single molecule in the asymmetric unit.