PRELIMINARY-X-RAY CRYSTALLOGRAPHIC ANALYSIS OF HOLOTOXIN FROM BORDETELLA-PERTUSSIS

Pertussis (whooping cough) is a serious infectious disease caused by the bacterium Bordetella pertussis. One of the major virulence factors is a protein known as pertussis toxin, which is composed of six subunits, with a total molecular weight of 106,000. Enzymatic transfer of ADP-ribose from NAD to a family of GTP-binding proteins is effected by the largest subunit (S1 or the A monomer), while binding of host cells and entry of S1 to the interior is a function of the other subunits (the B oligomer). The holotoxin crystallizes in the orthorhombic space group P212121, with unit cell dimensions a = 98·4 Å, b = 164·2 Å and c = 195·2 Å. The crystals are suitable for high-resolution X-ray diffraction analysis. © 1990 Academic Press Limited.