This review contains recent data on serial femtosecond X-ray crystallography (SFX), based on a femtosecond X-ray free electron laser, as well as on the possibilities of its application for studying photosensitive proteins. Development of this method began rather recently, and it has already shown its effectiveness and some unique advantages over conventional X-ray structural analysis. This technology is especially promising for structural studies of membrane proteins and for kinetic studies. The main principle of the method, the possibility of its application in structural biology, its advantages and disadvantages, as well as its prospects for further development are analyzed in this review. Special attention is given to publications in which the SFX method has been used to study photosensitive proteins.

Uridine phosphorylases play an essential role in the cellular metabolism of some antibacterial agents. Acute infectious diseases (bubonic plague, yersiniosis, pseudotuberculosis, etc., caused by bacteria of the genus Yersinia ) are treated using both sulfanilamide medicines and antibiotics, including trimethoprim. The action of an antibiotic on a bacterial cell is determined primarily by the character of its interactions with cellular components, including those which are not targets (for example, with pyrimidine phosphorylases). This type of interaction should be taken into account in designing drugs. The three-dimensional structure of uridine phosphorylase from the bacterium Yersinia pseudotuberculosis ( Ypt UPh) with the free active site was determined for the first time by X-ray crystallography and refined at 1.40 Å resolution (DPI = 0.062 Å; ID PDB: 4OF4). The structure of the complex of Ypt UPh with the bacteriostatic drug trimethoprim was studied by molecular docking and molecular dynamics methods. The trimethoprim molecule was shown to be buffered by the enzyme Ypt UPh, resulting in a decrease in the efficiency of the treatment of infectious diseases caused by bacteria of the genus Yersinia with trimethoprim.

Photosystem II (PSII) catalyzes the light-induced generation of oxygen from water. The oxygen-evolving complex is buried deep in the protein on the lumenal side of PSII, and water molecules need to pass through protein subunits to reach the active site-the manganese cluster. Previous studies on the elucidation of water channels in PSII were based on an analysis of the cavities in the static PSII structure determined by X-ray diffraction. In the present study, we perform molecular dynamics simulations of the water movement in the transport system of PSII.

Pseudotuberculosis and bubonic plague are acute infectious diseases caused by the bacteria Yersinia pseudotuberculosis and Yersinia pestis . These diseases are treated, in particular, with trimethoprim and its modified analogues. However, uridine phosphorylases (pyrimidine nucleoside phosphorylases) that are present in bacterial cells neutralize the action of trimethoprim and its modified analogues on the cells. In order to reveal the character of the interaction of the drug with bacterial uridine phosphorylase, the atomic structure of the unligated molecule of uridine-specific pyrimidine nucleoside phosphorylase from Yersinia pseudotuberculosis ( Ypt UPh) was determined by X-ray diffraction at 1.7 Å resolution with high reliability ( R work = 16.2, R free = 19.4%; r.m.s.d. of bond lengths and bond angles are 0.006 Å and 1.005°, respectively; DPI = 0.107 Å). The atoms of the amino acid residues of the functionally important secondary-structure elements—the loop L9 and the helix H8—of the enzyme Ypt UPh were located. The three-dimensional structure of the complex of Ypt UPh with modified trimethoprim—referred to as 53I—was determined by the computer simulation. It was shown that 53I is a pseudosubstrate of uridine phosphorylases, and its pyrimidine-2,4-diamine group is located in the phosphate-binding site of the enzyme Ypt UPh.

In thylakoids of cyanobacteria and other photosynthetic organisms, the light-induced production of molecular oxygen is catalyzed by the giant lipid-pigment-protein complex called photosystem II (PSII). The oxygen-evolving complex is buried deep in the lumenal part of PSII, and dioxygen molecules need to pass through the protein environment in order to leave the active site of the enzyme free. Previous studies aimed at finding oxygen channels in PSII were based on either an analysis of the cavities within is static structure or experiments on the insertion of noble gas molecules into PSII crystals under elevated pressure. In these studies, some possible exit pathways for the molecules were found and the static positions of molecular oxygen were determined. In the present work, the oxygen movement in the transport system of PSII is simulated by molecular dynamics.

Photosystem II (PSII) is a multicomponent enzyme complex that catalyzes the light-induced water splitting to molecular oxygen, protons, and electrons. Photosystem II is located in the membranes of cyanobacteria, green algae, and plants. The crystallization of this complex from the thylakoid membranes poses great difficulties. The high sensitivity of photosystem II to light and radiation has an adverse effect on the crystal quality, as well as on the quality of X-ray diffraction data. This is the reason why the crystal structure of PSII from Thermosynechococcus elongates has as yet not been determined at high resolution. The optimization of the strategy for collecting X-ray diffraction data from PSII crystals has resulted in an increase in the resolution to 2.75 Å, which made it possible to determine the positions of ions and some water molecules playing an important role in the functioning of PSII.

Photosynthesis is one of the most important chemical processes in the biosphere responsible for the maintenance of life on Earth. Light energy is converted into energy of chemical bonds in photoreaction centers, which, in particular, include photosystem II (PS II). PS II is a multisubunit pigment-protein complex located in the thylakoid membrane of cyanobacteria, algae and plants. PS II realizes the first stage of solar energy conversion that results in decomposition of water to molecular oxygen, protons, and bound electrons via a series of consecutive reactions. During recent years, considerable progress has been achieved in determination of the spatial structures of PS II from various cyanobacteria. In the present review, we outline the current state of crystallographic studies on PS II.

Photosystem II is a key component of the photosynthetic pathway producing oxygen at the thylakoid membrane of cyanobacteria, green algae, and plants. The three-dimensional structure of photosystem II from the cyanobacterium Thermosynechococcus elongates in a complex with herbicide terbutryn (a photosynthesis inhibitor) was determined for the first time by X-ray diffraction and refined at 3.2 Å resolution ( R factor = 26.9%, R free = 29.9%, rmsd for bond lengths is 0.013 Å, and rmsd for bond angles is 2.2°). The terbutryn molecule was located in the binding pocket of the mobile plastoquinone. The atomic coordinates of the refined structure of photosystem II in a complex with terbutryn were deposited in the Protein Data Bank.

Uridine phosphorylase (UPh) catalyzes the phosphorolytic cleavage of the C-N glycosidic bond of uridine to ribose 1-phosphate and uracil in the pyrimidine-salvage pathway. The crystal structure of the Salmonella typhimurium uridine phosphorylase (StUPh) has been determined at 2.5 A resolution and refined to an R factor of 22.1% and an Rfree of 27.9%. The hexameric StUPh displays 32 point-group symmetry and utilizes both twofold and threefold non-crystallographic axes. A phosphate is bound at the active site and forms hydrogen bonds to Arg91, Arg30, Thr94 and Gly26 of one monomer and Arg48 of an adjacent monomer. The hexameric StUPh model reveals a close structural relationship to Escherichia coli uridine phosphorylase (EcUPh).