Crystal structures of the cellulase Cel48F in complex with inhibitors and substrates give insights into its processive action.

Cellulase Cel48F from Clostridium cellulolyticum was described as a processive endo-cellulase. The active site is composed of a 25 A long tunnel which is followed by an open cleft. During the processive action, the cellulose substrate has to slide through the tunnel to continuously supply the leaving group site with sugar residues after the catalytic cleavage.

Crystallization of the catalytic domain of Clostridium cellulolyticum CeLF cellulase in the presence of a newly synthesized cellulase inhibitor.

The catalytic domain of the CeIF processive endocellulase, a family 48 glycosyl hydrolase from Clostridium cellulolyticum has been crystallized in the presence of a newly synthesized inhibitor (methyl 4-S-beta-cellobiosyl-4-thio-beta-cellobioside), by vapour diffusion, using PEG as a precipitant. The protein crystallizes in the orthorhombic P212121 space group and diffracts to a resolution of 2.0 A.

The crystal structure of the processive endocellulase CelF of Clostridium cellulolyticum in complex with a thiooligosaccharide inhibitor at 2.0 A resolution.

The mesophilic bacterium Clostridium cellulolyticum exports multienzyme complexes called cellulosomes to digest cellulose. One of the three major components of the cellulosome is the processive endocellulase CelF. The crystal structure of the catalytic domain of CelF in complex with two molecules of a thiooligosaccharide inhibitor was determined at 2.

Characterization of the cellulolytic complex (cellulosome) produced by Clostridium cellulolyticum.

The cellulolytic complex was isolated from Clostridium cellulolyticum grown on cellulose. Upon gel filtration, the complex was found to consist mainly of 600-kDa units, along with a 16-MDa aggregate. Its ability to degrade various substrates and its capacity to bind to the crystalline cellulose were measured.

The processive endocellulase CelF, a major component of the Clostridium cellulolyticum cellulosome: purification and characterization of the recombinant form.

The recombinant form of the cellulase CelF of Clostridium cellulolyticum, tagged by a C-terminal histine tail, was overproduced in Escherichia coli. The fusion protein was purified by affinity chromatography on a Ni-nitrilotriacetic acid column. The intact form of CelF (Mr, 79,000) was rapidly degraded at the C terminus, giving a shorter stable form, called truncated CelF (Mr, 71,000).