Structure of the transcription regulator CcpA from Lactococcus lactis

The crystal structure of L. lactis CcpA is reported.

Carbohydrate-binding properties of goat secretory glycoprotein (SPG-40) and its functional implications: structures of the native glycoprotein and its four complexes with chitin-like oligosaccharides

The crystal structures of four complexes of a signalling glycoprotein from goat (SPG-40) with oligosaccharides of different lengths have been determined. The structures of the complexes with GlcNAc₃, GlcNAc₄, GlcNAc₅ and GlcNAc₆ revealed the positions of these oligosaccharides in the carbohydrate-binding groove and provided insights into the binding mechanism of oligosaccharides to SPG-40.

Automated search-model discovery and preparation for structure solution by molecular replacement

An automation pipeline for macromolecular structure solution by molecular replacement with a special emphasis on the discovery and preparation of a large number of search models is described. It is concluded that exploring a range of search models automatically can be valuable in many cases.

Packing and loop-structure variations in non-isomorphous crystals of FabZ from Plasmodium falciparum

The crystal structures of FabZ from P. falciparum in two crystal forms are reported and a detailed structural comparison is made of three crystal forms of this enzyme in order to explore the possible reasons for the existence of non-isomorphism.

Structures of the dimerization domains of the Escherichia coli di­sulfide-bond isomerase enzymes DsbC and DsbG

The crystal structures of the separate dimerization domains of the periplasmic disulfide-bond isomerases DsbC and DsbG have been determined at resolutions of 2.0 and 1.9 Å, respectively.

Structures of cyanide, nitric oxide and hydroxylamine complexes of Arthromyces ramosus peroxidase at 100 K refined to 1.3 Å resolution: coordination geometries of the ligands to the haem iron

Crystal structures of CN⁻-, NO- and hydroxylamine-bound forms of A. ramosus peroxidase at 1.3 Å resolution show the coordination geometries of the ligands to the haem iron.

Crystallographic analysis of Bacillus subtilis CsaA

The structure of the protein-targeting chaperone CsaA from B. subtilis has been solved to 2.0 Å resolution from a trigonal crystal form (P3₂21) and to 1.9 Å resolution from a tetragonal crystal form (P42₁2).

Cryogenic (<20 K) helium cooling mitigates radiation damage to protein crystals

Comparison of diffraction data collected from matched protein crystals bathed in helium at a set temperature of 8 K and nitrogen at 100 K indicate that the use of cryogenic helium can increase the diffractive lifetime of crystals and measurably mitigate radiation damage.

ADP-2Ho as a phasing tool for nucleotide-containing proteins

The application of ADP-2Ho as a heavy-atom derivative for the structure determination of MTR kinase is described.

Structure of the complex of trypsin with a highly potent synthetic inhibitor at 0.97 Å resolution

The crystal structure of trypsin with a designed highly potent synthetic inhibitor has been determined at atomic resolution. The structure has revealed the precise nature of the interactions between the enzyme and the inhibitor molecules.

Human glutamate carboxypeptidase II inhibition: structures of GCPII in complex with two potent inhibitors, quisqualate and 2-PMPA

Crystal structures were determined of the extracellular part of glutamate carboxypeptidase II (GCPII; amino-acid residues 44–750) in complex with two potent inhibitors, quisqualate and 2-PMPA (the most potent GCPII inhibitor to date), at resolutions of 3.0 and 2.2 Å, respectively.

CAALIGN: a program for pairwise and multiple protein-structure alignment

The program CAALIGN performs pairwise structure alignment and multiple structure alignment of protein structures based on the maximal superposition of C^α coordinates.

A method for the general identification of protein crystals in crystallization experiments using a noncovalent fluorescent dye

A method is described whereby the addition of a nonspecific fluorescent dye to a wide variety of different protein solutions prior to crystallization results in a significantly increased fluorescence signal being obtained from protein crystals. Subsequent fluorescence imaging of the crystallization experiments demonstrates that successful experiments containing crystals may be easily discriminated from other objects produced by the crystallization experiment.

Structures of and interactions between domains of trigger factor from Thermotoga maritima

Crystal structures and cross-linking experiments of the N- and C-terminal domains of T. maritima trigger factor (TF) are presented. Structural and cross-linking data suggest that TF could interact with substrate proteins via hydrophilic surfaces.

An alternate description of two crystal structures of phospholipase A₂ from Bungarus caeruleus

The noncrystallographic symmetry operations reported for two crystal structures of phospholipase A₂ isoforms from the common krait can be reinterpreted as crystallographic operations. The change in space group affects conclusions about the oligomeric forms of the proteins in the crystalline state.

An automated microseed matrix-screening method for protein crystallization

The formation of nuclei in a crystallization experiment requires the interaction of protein molecules until a critical size of aggregate is created. The formation of such nuclei may be achieved either at very high protein concentrations or at lower levels of saturation with the introduction of seeds to form nucleation sites. Incorporating this seeding step into an automated screening process could have a considerable influence on the number of conditions which produce crystals. Some preliminary results are presented in this article.