Purification, crystallization and preliminary X-ray analysis of the catalytic domain of the Escherichia coli tRNase colicin D.

The tRNase domain of colicin D, which cleaves only tRNA(Arg)s at the 3' side of their anticodon loops, has been expressed in Escherichia coli with its inhibitor protein and purified to a form free from the inhibitor using a low-pH buffer. Crystals were obtained by the hanging-drop vapour-diffusion method at 278 K from a buffer containing 100 mM Tris-HCl pH 8.5, 22% PEG MME 2000 and 1 mM nickel(II) chloride. Diffraction data to 1.05 A resolution were collected at BL41XU, SPring-8. The crystals belong to space group P2(1)2(1)2(1), with unit-cell parameters a = 34.7, b = 65.5, c = 96.5 A.