Related Experiment Video
Updated: Jan 31, 2026

Production of Disulfide-stabilized Transmembrane Peptide Complexes for Structural Studies
Published on: March 6, 2013
The PA Tag: A Versatile Peptide Tagging System in the Era of Integrative Structural Biology
Zuben P Brown1, Junichi Takagi2
1Laboratory of Protein Synthesis and Expression, Institute for Protein Research, Osaka University, Suita, Osaka, Japan.
Abstract:
We have recently developed a novel protein tagging system based on the high affinity interaction between an antibody NZ-1 and its antigen PA peptide, a dodecapeptide that forms a β-turn in the binding pocket of NZ-1. This unique conformation allows for the PA peptide to be inserted into turn-forming loops within a folded protein domain and the system has been variously used in general applications including protein purification, Western blotting and flow cytometry, or in more specialized applications such as reporting protein conformational change, and identifying subunits of macromolecular complexes with electron microscopy. Thus the small and "portable" nature of the PA tag system offers a versatile and powerful tool that can be implemented in various aspects of integrative structural biology.
Related Concept Videos
Tagging and Fusion Proteins
Peptide Bonds
What is Conservation Biology?
Integration by Parts: Indefinite Integrals
Protein and Protein Structure
A protein's shape is critical to its function. For example, an enzyme...
Biological Effects of Radiation

