STRUCTURAL STUDIES ON MAMMALIAN BINDING PROTEINS & HEAT STABLE ENZYMES

血红素结合蛋白是一种血清糖蛋白，其结合由血红素结合蛋白释放的血红素。 血红蛋白分解，运输它，并通过 特定受体 血液结合蛋白由两个结构域组成，N-末端 结构域结合血红素，和C-末端结构域，这是必不可少的 用于受体结合。 由于氨基酸比较表明， 域可能具有相似的结构，这使我们能够 模拟血红素结合域。 我们有完整的水晶 分子，但这些被证明是非常温度敏感， 很难成功地安装在毛细管中。 结晶冻结 在SSRL使用同步辐射将是唯一的方法 从这些晶体中可以收集到任何有用的数据。

Hemopexin is a serum glycoprotein which binds the heme released by hemoglobin breakdown, transport it, and delivers it to the liver via specific receptors. Hemopexin consists of two domains, an N-terminal domain which binds heme, and a C-terminal domain which is essential for receptor binding. Since amino acid comparisons show that both domains are likely to have similar structures, this has enable us to model the heme binding domain. We have crystals of the intact molecule, but these prove to be extremely temperature-sensitive and very difficult to mount successfully in capillaries. Crystal freezing and the use of synchrotron radiation at SSRL will be the only way in which any useful data can be collected from these crystals.