Crystallization of the glycogen-binding domain of the AMP-activated protein kinase beta subunit and preliminary X-ray analysis

AMP-activated protein kinase (AMPK) is an intracellular energy sensor that regulates metabolism in response to energy demand and supply by adjusting the ATP-generating and ATP-consuming pathways. AMPK potentially plays a critical role in diabetes and obesity as it is known to be activated by metforin and rosiglitazone, drugs used for the treatment of type II diabetes. AMPK is a heterotrimer composed of a catalytic alpha subunit and two regulatory subunits, beta and gamma. Mutations in the gamma subunit are known to cause glycogen accumulation, leading to cardiac arrhythmias. Recently, a functional glycogen-binding domain (GBD) has been identified in the beta subunit. Here, the crystallization of GBD in the presence of beta-cyclodextrin is reported together with preliminary X-ray data analysis allowing the determination of the structure by single isomorphous replacement and threefold averaging using in-house X-ray data collected from a selenomethionine-substituted protein.