Expression, purification, crystallization and preliminary X-ray analysis of perakine reductase, a new member of the aldo-keto reductase enzyme superfamily from higher plants.

Perakine reductase (PR) is a novel member of the aldo-keto reductase enzyme superfamily from higher plants. PR from the plant Rauvolfia serpentina is involved in the biosynthesis of monoterpenoid indole alkaloids by performing NADPH-dependent reduction of perakine, yielding raucaffrinoline. However, PR can also reduce cinnamic aldehyde and some of its derivatives. After heterologous expression of a triple mutant of PR in Escherichia coli, crystals of the purified and methylated enzyme were obtained by the hanging-drop vapour-diffusion technique at 293 K with 100 mM sodium citrate pH 5.6 and 27% PEG 4000 as precipitant. Crystals belong to space group C222(1) and diffract to 2.0 A, with unit-cell parameters a = 58.9, b = 93.0, c = 143.4 A.