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A convergence of technical advances in electron cryomicroscopy will allow visualization of biomolecular assemblies, without crystals, at resolutions below 10 Å. Recent cryomicroscopic structures of papillomavirus and hepatitis B virus capsid provide case studies.
The crystal structure of the yeast 20S proteasome not only provides further detail of the maws of this family of protein shredders, but also, has profound implications for the mechanism of peptide processing for antigen presentation.
Two complementary studies using fluorescence energy transfer with two different serpin–enzyme pairs provide the first glimpse of a stable serpin–proteinase complex.
The specific binding of N7-methylguanine cap analogues to the RNA methyltransferase VP39 was observed through X-ray crystallography, providing a prototypical structure for a complex between a protein and an mRNA 5′ cap.
Analysis of native serpin–protease complexes indicate that inhibition by serpins involves reactive centre cleavage and partial loop insertion, whereby the covalently linked protease migrates from the position of the initial attack to a position on the surface of the inhibitor β-sheet A to form a virtually irreversible complex.
The three-dimensional structure of staphylokinase has been determined at 1.8 Å.The puntative site of interaction with plasminogen was identified and epitopes were mapped.
Based on structures of five mutants of green fluorescent protein (GFP), we describe two conformational variants with differing charge distribution that explain the published absorption and fluorescence spectra of GFP mutants.
Cofilin, a ubiquitous 15,000 Mr protein, plays a central role in regulating cytoskeletal dynamics. Cofilin binds to act in monomers and filaments, and has a pH-dependent actin severing activity. The structure will allow for a detailed analysis of cof ilin function.
Actophorin is a member of the actin-depolymerizing factor/cofilin family. It severs act in filaments and sequesters actin monomers. The crystal structure of actophorin will help to elucidate actin–ADF/cofilin interactions.
