The First Three-Dimensional Structure of Phosphofructokinase from Saccharomyces cerevisiae Determined by Electron Microscopy of Single Particles

• Published in: Journal of structural biology 2001-12, Vol.136 (3), p.167-180
• Main Authors: Ruiz, Teresa, Kopperschläger, Gerhard, Radermacher, Michael
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: CTF correction; electron microscopy; glycolytic enzyme; Microscopy, Electron - methods; Models, Molecular; phosphofructokinase; Phosphofructokinase-1 - chemistry; Phosphofructokinase-1 - ultrastructure; Protein Conformation; Protein Subunits; radon transforms; Saccharomyces cerevisiae; Saccharomyces cerevisiae - enzymology; simultaneous alignment; three-dimensional reconstruction; vitreous ice
• ISSN: 1047-8477; 1095-8657
• DOI: 10.1006/jsbi.2002.4440

Phosphofructokinaseis a key regulatory enzyme of the glycolytic pathway. We have determined the structure of this enzyme from Saccharomyces cerevisiae to a resolution of 2.0 nm. This is the first structure available for this family of enzymes in eukaryotic organisms. Phosphofructokinase is an octamer composed of 4α and 4β subunits arranged in a dihedral point group symmetry D2. The enzyme has a very open and elongated structure, with dimensions of 24 nm in length and 17 nm in width. The final structure, calculated from 0° tilt projections of the molecule at random orientations using as reference the volume obtained by the random conical reconstruction technique in ice, has allowed us to discern the shapes of the subunits and their mutual arrangement in the octamer.