Biophysical characterization of lithostathine. Evidences for a polymeric structure at physiological pH and a proteolysis mechanism leading to the formation of fibrils.

Lithostathine is a calcium carbonate crystal habit modifier. It is found precipitated under the form of fibrils in chronic calcifying pancreatitis or Alzheimer's disease. In order to gain better insight into the nature and the formation of fibrils, we have expressed and purified recombinant lithostathine.

Circular dichroism and molecular modeling of the E. coli TolA periplasmic domains.

Colicins are killer proteins that use envelope proteins from the outer and the inner membranes to reach their cellular target in susceptible cells of Escherichia coli. Each group A colicin uses a combination of Tol proteins to cross the outer membrane of gram-negative bacteria and to exert their killing activity. The TolA protein, necessary for the import of all the group A colicins, is a 421-amino acid residue protein composed of three domains (TolAI, TolAII, and TolAIII).