Preliminary crystallographic studies of the ligand-binding domain of the thyroid hormone receptor complexed with triiodothyronine

A truncated, recombinant form of the thyroid hormone receptor, including the hormone binding domain, has been co-crystallized with the hormone T3. The crystals are monoclinic, most likely space group P2, with two molecules per asymmetric unit and cell dimensions a = 63.6 A, b = 80.8 A, c = 100.9 A and beta = 92.1 degrees. The crystals diffract to only medium resolution and decay rapidly in the X-ray beam using laboratory sources. By contrast, high resolution, high-quality data are obtained using synchrotron radiation in conjunction with cryocrystallography.