Crystallographic characterization of ferritin from Sinonovacula constricta

June 29, 2020

Title

Crystallographic characterization of ferritin from Sinonovacula constricta

Year

2020

Journal

Biochemical and Biophysical Research Communications

Abstract

Ferritins are ubiquitous iron-binding proteins that are mainly related to iron storage, detoxification and innate immunity. Here, we present the crystal structure of a marine invertebrate ferritin from Sinonovacula constricta at a resolution of 1.98 Å. The S. constricta ferritin (ScFer) possessed some structural similarities with vertebrate ferritins, and they shared a well-conserved architecture composed of five ahelical bundles that assembled into a cage-like structure with 24-subunits. The structure of ScFer also showed iron binding sites in the 3-fold channel, ferroxidase center, and putative nucleation sites. Further, electrostatic potential calculations suggested that the electrostatic gradient of the 3-fold channel could provide a guidance mechanism for iron entering the ferritin cavity.

Instrument

J-815

Keywords

Circular dichroism, Secondary structure, Biochemistry