CRYSTALLIZATION AND PRELIMINARY-X-RAY DIFFRACTION ANALYSIS OF THE LUMAZINE SYNTHASE FROM BRUCELLA-ABORTUS

Lumazine synthase from Brucella abortus was overexpressed in Escherich ia coli, refolded, and purified to apparent homogeneity. Crystals of l umazine synthase were grown by the hanging drop vapor diffusion method using polyethylene glycol 8000 or ammonium sulfate as precipitants. T hey belong to the trigonal space group P321 with cell parameters a = b = 132.00 Angstrom, c = 167.25 Angstrom. A complete diffraction data s et to 3.7 Angstrom resolution has been collected using synchrotron rad iation. Preliminary analysis of the quaternary structure of this prote in by means of a self-rotation function calculated with the diffractio n data clearly indicates 532 symmetry compatible with the presence of an icosahedral lumazine synthase particle. (C) 1998 Academic Press.