Biomolecular membrane protein crystallization

Abstract

Integral membrane proteins comprise approximately 30% of the sequenced genomes, and there is an immediate need for their high-resolution structural information. Currently, the most reliable approach to obtain these structures is X-ray crystallography. However, obtaining crystals of membrane proteins that diffract to high resolution appears to be quite challenging, and remains a major obstacle in structural determination. This brief review summarizes a variety of methodologies for use in crystallizing these membrane proteins. Hopefully, by introducing the available methods, techniques, and providing a general understanding of membrane proteins, a rational decision can be made about now to crystallize these complex materials.

Keywords:

• membrane protein
• X-ray crystallography
• detergent
• lipid
• efflux pump

Acknowledgements

This work is supported by a NIH Grant R01GM086431 (E.W.Y.).