Cloning, expression, purification, crystallization and preliminary crystallographic study of the protein module (BIV2-Helix) in the fusion core of bovine immunodeficiency-like virus (BIV) gp40.

The fusion core of bovine immunodeficiency virus (BIV) gp40 is proposed to be involved in membrane fusion. However, no crystal structures are yet available. A predicted protein module BIV2-Helix of BIVgp40 has been expressed in Escherichia coli and purified by chromatography. Recombinant BIV2-Helix was crystallized using the hanging-drop vapour-diffusion technique at 291 K. The crystals were grown in MPD and belonged to the primitive rhombohedral space group R3, with unit-cell parameters a = 39.17, b = 39.17, c = 295.05 A and two molecules per asymmetric unit. X-ray diffraction data were collected to 1.76 A in the home laboratory from a single crystal.