Isolation, purification, crystallization and preliminary crystallographic studies of sagitoxin, an oligomeric cardiotoxin from the venom of Naja naja saggitifera

Sagitoxin, a novel cardiotoxin from the venom of Naja naja saggitifera, has been successfully isolated, purified to homogeneity and crystallized. The toxin was purified using successive separation steps on a CM-Sephadex C-50 column and a reverse-phase column. The 6.75 kDa toxin was sequenced by the Edman method using a PPSQ-21 protein sequencer. It was crystallized using the hanging-drop vapour-diffusion method. The hexagonal-shaped crystals diffracted to 3.0 Å resolution and belonged to space group P6₄, with unit-cell parameters a = b = 111.1, c = 137.3 Å, γ = 120°. There are 36 molecules in the unit cell, which has an approximate solvent content of 80%. Structure determination revealed that the molecules of sagitoxin associate in a hexameric form and create a pore in the centre which has functional significance.