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The structure of a mutant variant of Escherichia coli N-acetyl-d-neuraminic acid lyase (NAL), E192N, in complex with pyruvate has been determined in a new crystal form. It crystallized in space group P2(1)2(1)2(1), with unit-cell parameters a = 78.3, b = 108.5, c = 148.3 angstrom. Pyruvate has been trapped in the active site as a Schiff base with the catalytic lysine (Lys165) without the need for reduction. Unlike the previously published crystallization conditions for the wild-type enzyme, in which a mother-liquor-derived sulfate ion is strongly bound in the catalytic pocket, the low-salt conditions described here will facilitate the determination of further E. coli NAL structures in complex with other activesite ligands.

Catalase-phenol oxidase from Scytalidium thermophilum is a bifunctional enzyme: its major activity is the catalase-mediated decomposition of hydrogen peroxide, but it also catalyzes phenol oxidation. To understand the structural basis of this dual functionality, the enzyme, which has been shown to be a tetramer in solution, has been purified by anion-exchange and gel-filtration chromatography and has been crystallized using the hanging-drop vapour-diffusion technique. Streak-seeding was used to obtain larger crystals suitable for X-ray analysis. Diffraction data were collected to 2.8 A resolution at the Daresbury Synchrotron Radiation Source. The crystals belonged to space group P2(1) and contained one tetramer per asymmetric unit.

The mechanism of molecular oxygen entry into the buried active site of the copper amine oxidase family has been investigated in several family members using biochemical, structural and in silico methods. These studies have revealed a structurally conserved beta-sandwich which acts as a hydrophobic reservoir from which molecular oxygen can take several species-specific preferred pathways to the active site. Escherichia coli copper amine oxidase (ECAO) possesses an extra N-terminal domain that lies close to one entrance to the beta-sandwich. In order to investigate whether the presence of this domain alters molecular oxygen entry in this enzyme, xenon was used as a molecular oxygen binding-site probe. The resulting 2.5 A resolution X-ray crystal structure reveals xenon bound in similar positions to those observed in xenon-derivative crystal structures of other family members, suggesting that the N-terminal domain does not affect oxygen entry and that the E. coli enzyme takes up oxygen in a similar manner to the rest of the copper amine oxidase family.

Caenorhabditis elegans expresses two manganese superoxide dismutase enzymes (MnSOD-2 and MnSOD-3) that are targeted to the mitochondrion. MnSOD-2 is constitutively expressed, while synthesis of MnSOD-3 is inducible. The structures of these two mononuclear metalloenzymes have been determined to 1.8 and 1.7 A resolution, respectively. Pink crystals formed in space group P4(1)2(1)2 for each, with unit-cell parameters a = b = 81.0, c = 137.4 A for MnSOD-2 and a = b = 81.8, c = 136.0 A for MnSOD-3. The final structure of MnSOD-3 was refined to R = 21.6% and R(free) = 26.2% at 293 K, and R = 18.9% and R(free) = 22.6% at 100 K, while that of MnSOD-2 was refined to R = 16.9% and R(free) = 20.1% at 100 K. The asymmetric unit cell is comprised of two subunits. The resulting structures are very similar to that of human MnSOD and form a tetramer corresponding to a dimer of dimers. The subunit interface between dimers is comprised of two four-helix bundles that stabilize the biologically significant homotetramer.

In Bacillus subtilis the concentration of L-arginine is controlled by the transcriptional regulator AhrC, which interacts with 18 bp DNA operator sites called ARG boxes in the promoters of arginine biosynthetic and catabolic operons. AhrC is a 100 kDa homohexamer, with each subunit having two domains. The C-terminal domains form the core, mediating intersubunit interactions and binding of the co-repressor L-arginine, whilst the N-terminal domains contain a winged helix-turn-helix DNA-binding motif and are arranged around the periphery. The N-terminal domain of AhrC has been expressed, purified and characterized and it has been shown that the fragment still binds DNA operators as a recombinant monomer. The DNA-binding domain has also been crystallized and the crystal structure refined to 1.0 A resolution is presented.

The arginine repressor/activator protein (AhrC) from Bacillus subtilis belongs to a large family of multifunctional transcription factors that are involved in the regulation of bacterial arginine metabolism. AhrC interacts with operator sites in the promoters of arginine biosynthetic and catabolic operons, acting as a transcriptional repressor at biosynthetic sites and an activator of transcription at catabolic sites. AhrC is a hexamer of identical subunits, each having two domains. The C-terminal domains form the core of the protein and are involved in oligomerization and L-arginine binding. The N-terminal domains lie on the outside of the compact core and play a role in binding to 18 bp DNA operators called ARG boxes. The C-terminal domain of AhrC has been expressed, purified and characterized, and also crystallized as a hexamer with the bound corepressor L-arginine. Here, the crystal structure refined to 1.95 A is presented.

DNA topoisomerase IV removes undesirable topological features from DNA molecules in order to help maintain chromosome stability. Two constructs of 56 and 59 kDa spanning the DNA-cleavage domain of the A subunit of topoisomerase IV from Staphylococcus aureus (termed GrlA56 and GrlA59) have been crystallized. Crystals were grown at 291 K using the sitting-drop vapour-diffusion technique with PEG 3350 as a precipitant. Preliminary X-ray analysis revealed that GrlA56 crystals belong to space group P2(1), diffract to a resolution of 2.9 A and possess unit-cell parameters a = 83.6, b = 171.5, c = 87.8 A, beta = 90.1 degrees, while crystals of GrlA59 belong to space group P2(1)2(1)2, with unit-cell parameters a = 41.5, b = 171.89, c = 87.9 A. These crystals diffract to a resolution of 2.8 A. This is the first report of the crystallization and preliminary X-ray analysis of the DNA-cleavage domain of a topoisomerase IV from a Gram-positive organism.