Crystal structure of Thermoplasma acidophilum XerA recombinase shows large C‐shape clamp conformation and cis‐cleavage mode for nucleophilic tyrosine

Site-specific Xer recombination plays a pivotal role in reshuffling genetic information. Here, we report the 2.5 A crystal structure of XerA from the archaean Thermoplasma acidophilum. Crystallographic data reveal a uniquely open conformational state, resulting in a C-shaped clamp with an angle of ~ 48° and a distance of 57 A between the core-binding and the catalytic domains. The catalytic nucleophile, Tyr264, is positioned in cis-cleavage mode by XerA's C-term tail that interacts with the CAT domain of a neighboring monomer without DNA substrate. Structural comparisons of tyrosine recombinases elucidate the dynamics of Xer recombinase.