Highlights: Structural biology
Up one levelHow an oxygen-tolerant hydrogenase protects itself from oxygen
The crystal structure of an oxygen-tolerant hydrogenase has revealed the mechanism used by some of these enzymes to protect themselves from oxygen, an observation that should pave the way for the expanded use of hydrogenases in many biotechnological developments.…
Proteins shine a brighter light on cellular processes
A new cyan fluorescent protein will make cellular imaging more sensitive. …
How GPCRs get their message accross
G protein-coupled receptors (GPCRs) are enormously important drug targets, accounting for about 30% of approved drugs with many hundreds of drugs currently in development also targeting them. New structures reveal how they respond to their signalling molcules…
The molecular details of receptor-drug interactions in the treatment of asthma and heart conditions
ID23-2. Spotlight, 15/11/2011.…
A Dual Binding Mode for RhoGTPases in Plexin Signalling
Plexins are a type of cell surface receptor that have been implicated in oncogenesis. New structures of Plexin B1 have allowed a model of signalling to be proposed.…
Snapshot of a bacterial transporter in the act of secreting a protein
ID29 - protein crystallography (Spotlight, 04/10/2011)…
First beam taken on BM29
The new highly automated Structural Biology SAXS beamline located at BM29 has taken its first beam…
Crystal structure of MTH1203 from the archaeon Methanothermobacter thermoautotrophicus in its active dimeric form at 3.1 Å resolution
MTH1203, a β-CASP metallo-β-lactamase family nuclease from the archaeon Methanothermobacter thermautotrophicus, was identified as a putative nuclease that might contribute to RNA processing.…
First beam taken on ID30
The new MASSIF beamlines for Structural Biology located at ID30 have taken their first beam…
Structural and spectroscopic observation of an enzyme at work
ID14-1 - protein crystallography (Spotlight, 20/09/2011)…
The structure of the FimD usher bound to its cognate FimC–FimH substrate
Pili are important structures found on the surface of bacteria that are important in pathogen infection. New structures show the first steps in the construction of these structures…
The structure of the Kinesin-1 motor-tail complex reveals the mechanism of autoinhibition
ID23-2 - macromolecular crystallography (News, 12/08/2011)…
Structure of the membrane domain of respiratory complex I
ID29 — R.G. Efremov and L. Sazanov (News, 08/08/2011)…
Bio-SAXS at ID14-3: looking at proteins in their native state – a valuable complement to protein crystallography studies
ID14-3 - BioSAX (Spotlight 12/07/2011)…
The structure of KSR2 in complex with MEK1
The Ras-Raf-MEK-ERK signalling pathway is important for regulation of cellular function and gene expression in metazoans and mutations of this pathway are responsible for a wide range of human cancers. KSR (Kinase Suppressor of Ras) is essential for coordinating the assembly…
Crystal structure of the ZP-N domain of ZP3 reveals the core fold of animal egg coats
In mammals, the interaction between the egg extracellular matrix (Zona Pellucida) and the sperm is mediated by two components of the Zona Pellucida, ZP2 and ZP3, which act as sperm receptors. These proteins polymerise through a “Zona Pellucida domain” (ZP domain) whose c…
The structure of UvrA nucleotide excision repair protein in complex with modified DNA
Jaciuk et al. Nature Struct. Mol. Biol., 18, 191-197 (2011) | DNA damage can occur due to normal metabolic activities and environmental factors such as UV light and ionising radiation. One of the primary pathways for removal of DNA damage is nucleotide excision repair (NER…