Crystallization and X-Ray Crystallographic Studies of Wild-Type and Mutant Tryptophan Synthase α-Subunits from Escherichia coli

The a-subunit of Escherichia coli tryptophan synthase (${\alpha}TS$), a component of the tryptophan synthase ${\alpha}_2{\beta}_2$ complex, is a monomeric 268-residues protein (Mr = 28,600). ${\alpha}TS$ by itself catalyzes the cleavage of indole-3-glycerol phosphate to glyceraldehyde-3-phosphate and indole, which is converted to tryptophan in tryptophan biosynthesis. Wild-type and P28L/Y173F double mutant ${\alpha}$-subunits were overexpressed in E. coli and crystallized at 298 K by the hanging-drop vapor-diffusion method. X-ray diffraction data were collected to $2.5{\AA}$ resolution from the wild-type crystals and to $1.8{\AA}$ from the crystals of the double mutant, since the latter produced better quality diffraction data. The wild-type crystals belonged to the monoclinic space group C2 ($a=155.64{\AA}$, $b=44.54{\AA}$, $c=71.53{\AA}$ and ${\beta}=96.39^{\circ}$) and the P28L/Y173F crystals to the monoclinic space group $P2_1$ ($a=71.09{\AA}$, b=52.70, $c=71.52{\AA}$ and ${\beta}=91.49^{\circ}$). The asymmetric unit of both structures contained two molecules of ${\alpha}TS$. Crystal volume per protein mass ($V_m$) and solvent content were $2.15{\AA}^3\;Da^{-1}$ and 42.95% for the wild-type and $2.34{\AA}^3\;Da^{-1}$ and 47.52% for the double mutant.