The three-dimensional structure of Drosophila melanogaster (6-4) photolyase at room temperature

Abstract

(6-4) photolyases are flavoproteins that belong to the photolyase/cryptochrome family. Their function is to repair DNA lesions using visible light. Here, crystal structures of Drosophila melanogaster (6-4) photolyase [Dm(6-4)photolyase] at room and cryogenic temperatures are reported. The room-temperature structure was solved to 2.27 angstrom resolution and was obtained by serial femtosecond crystallography (SFX) using an X-ray free-electron laser. The crystallization and preparation conditions are also reported. The cryogenic structure was solved to 1.79 angstrom resolution using conventional X-ray crystallography. The structures agree with each other, indicating that the structural information obtained from crystallography at cryogenic temperature also applies at room temperature. Furthermore, UV-Vis absorption spectroscopy confirms that Dm(6-4)photolyase is photoactive in the crystals, giving a green light to time-resolved SFX studies on the protein, which can reveal the structural mechanism of the photoactivated protein in DNA repair.