title: Structural genomics of the severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus: nuclear magnetic resonance structure of the protein nsP7.
abstract: Here, we report the three-dimensional structure of severe acute respiratory syndrome coronavirus (SARS-CoV) nsP7, a component of the SARS-CoV replicase polyprotein. The coronavirus replicase carries out regulatory tasks involved in the maintenance, transcription, and replication of the coronavirus genome. nsP7 was found to assume a compact architecture in solution, which is comprised primarily of helical secondary structures. Three helices (alpha2 to alpha4) form a flat up-down-up antiparallel alpha-helix sheet. The N-terminal segment of residues 1 to 22, containing two turns of alpha-helix and one turn of 3(10)-helix, is packed across the surface of alpha2 and alpha3 in the helix sheet, with the alpha-helical region oriented at a 60 degrees angle relative to alpha2 and alpha3. The surface charge distribution is pronouncedly asymmetrical, with the flat surface of the helical sheet showing a large negatively charged region adjacent to a large hydrophobic patch and the opposite side containing a positively charged groove that extends along the helix alpha1. Each of these three areas is thus implicated as a potential site for protein-protein interactions.
authors.affiliation: Department of Molecular Biology, The Scripps Research Institute, La Jolla, California 92037, USA.
authors.forename: Wolfgang
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Peti
authors.forename: Margaret A
authors.initials: MA
authors.lastname: Johnson
authors.forename: Torsten
authors.initials: T
authors.lastname: Herrmann
authors.forename: Benjamin W
authors.initials: BW
authors.lastname: Neuman
authors.forename: Michael J
authors.initials: MJ
authors.lastname: Buchmeier
authors.forename: Mike
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Nelson
authors.forename: Jeremiah
authors.initials: J
authors.lastname: Joseph
authors.forename: Rebecca
authors.initials: R
authors.lastname: Page
authors.forename: Raymond C
authors.initials: RC
authors.lastname: Stevens
authors.forename: Peter
authors.initials: P
authors.lastname: Kuhn
authors.forename: Kurt
authors.initials: K
authors.lastname: Wüthrich
mesh_terms: D000595:Amino Acid Sequence; D008958:Models, Molecular; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D019906:Nuclear Magnetic Resonance, Biomolecular; D020815:Polyproteins / Q000737:chemistry; D017433:Protein Structure, Secondary; D017434:Protein Structure, Tertiary / Q000235:genetics; D012328:RNA Viruses / Q000378:metabolism; D012324:RNA-Dependent RNA Polymerase / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000235:genetics; D045473:Severe acute respiratory syndrome-related coronavirus / Q000737:chemistry*; D016415:Sequence Alignment; D014764:Viral Proteins / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000235:genetics / Q000502:physiology
chemical_list: D020815:Polyproteins; D014764:Viral Proteins; D012324:RNA-Dependent RNA Polymerase