Crystallization of Escherichia coli maltoporin in the trigonal space group R3

Maltoporin is an outer-membrane protein that forms a β-barrel composed of three monomers and ensures the transport of maltose and maltodextrin in Gram-negative bacteria. Previously, the crystallization of Escherichia coli or Salmonella typhimurium maltoporin has been achieved in the presence of a mixture of the detergents β-decylmaltoside and dodecyl nonaoxyethylene. These crystals all belonged to the orthorhombic space group C222(1) and gave rise to several structures of maltoporin in complex with different carbohydrates determined at resolutions between 3.2 and 2.4 Å. Here, the crystallization of E. coli maltoporin in a new crystal form is reported; the crystals belonged to the trigonal R3 space group and diffracted to 1.9 Å resolution. These crystals were obtained using n-dodecyl-β-D-maltoside as a detergent. Crystals with a lens or pyramidal morphology could be obtained using sitting or hanging drops, respectively, and despite their very different shapes they presented the same space group and very similar unit-cell parameters.