Expression, purification, crystallization and preliminary diffraction analysis of RNase P protein from Thermotoga maritima

Ribonuclease P (RNase P), the ubiquitous endonuclease that catalyzes maturation of the 5′-end of tRNA in bacteria, is a ribonucleoprotein particle composed of one large RNA and one small protein. Two major structural types of bacterial RNase P RNA have been identified by phylogenetic comparative analysis: the A (ancestral) and B (Bacillus) types. The RNase P protein from Thermotoga maritima, a hyperthermophilic bacterium with an A-type RNase P RNA, has been expressed in Escherichia coli. A purification strategy was developed to obtain a protein preparation suitable for crystallization. Protein crystals suitable for diffraction studies were obtained and characterized.