ABCG5/G8 Crystallization in a Lipidic Bicelle Environment for X-Ray Crystallography

ATP-binding cassette (ABC) transporters constitute lipid-embedded membrane proteins. Extracting these membrane proteins from the lipid bilayer to an aqueous environment is typically achieved by employing detergents. These detergents disintegrate the lipid bilayer and solubilize the proteins. The intrinsic habitat of membrane proteins within the lipid bilayer poses a challenge in maintaining their stability and uniformity in solution for structural characterization. Bicelles, which comprise a blend of long and short-chain phospholipids and detergents, replicate the natural lipid structure. The utilization of lipid bicelles and detergents serves as a suitable model system for obtaining high-quality diffraction crystals, specifically to determine the high-resolution structure of membrane proteins. Through these synthetic microenvironments, membrane proteins preserve their native conformation and functionality, facilitating the formation of three-dimensional crystals. In this approach, the detergent-solubilized heterodimeric ABCG5/G8 was reintegrated into DMPC/CHAPSO bicelles, supplemented with cholesterol. This setup was employed in the vapor diffusion experimental procedure for protein crystallization.