Crystallization and preliminary X-ray study of the cathepsin B complexed with CA074, a selective inhibitor

Cathepsin B from bovine spleen has been purified and crystallized as a complex with a specific inhibitor CA074 [N-(L-3-trans-propylcarbamoyloxirane-2-carbonyl)-L- isoleucyl-L-proline], using the hanging-drop method. The complex crystals obtained from 50 mM-citrate buffer (pH 3.5) belong to the tetragonal space group P4(1) (or P4(3)) with a = 73.06 A and c = 141.59 A, and diffract beyond 2.2 A resolution. There are two complex molecules per asymmetric unit giving a packing density of 3.37 A3/Da and indicating a high solvent content of 63.5%.