Final Activity Report Summary - ribosome-SecYEG (Crystallographic studies of the complex between the prokaryotic ribosome and the SecYEG translocon)
A reliable protocol for obtaining satisfactory amounts of translation-arrested e.coli ribosomes that were suitable for crystallisation and co-crystallisation was established. In order to achieve this goal, several problems regarding quantity, stability and uniformity of the ribosomes had to be overcome. Extensive crystallisation screening produced numerous crystallisation conditions under which single macrocrystals of translation-arrested ribosomes could be obtained reproducibly. The initial X-ray diffraction tests of these crystals showed promising results and highlighted the potential for further improvement.