Detection of L-lactate in polyethylene glycol solutions confirms the identity of the active-site ligand in a proline dehydrogenase structure

Polyethylene glycol (PEG) is often used in protein crystallography as a low-ionic-strength precipitant for crystallization and as a cryoprotectant for low-temperature data collection. Prompted by the discovery of an apparent L-lactate molecule bound in the active site of the Escherichia coli PutA proline dehydrogenase domain crystal structure, the L-lactate concentration of several PEG solutions was measured. 50%(w/v) solutions of PEGs with molecular weight 3000, 4000 and 8000 contain millimolar levels of L-lactate. In contrast, L-­lactate was not detected in solutions of PEG monomethyl ethers or PEG 3350. These results help to explain why L-lactate was present in the proline dehydrogenase domain crystal structure. This work also has implications for the crystallization of enzymes that bind L-lactate.