Three-dimensional structure of the tyrosine kinase c-Src

The structure of a large fragment of the c-Src tyrosine kinase, comprising the regulatory and kinase domains and the carboxy-terminal tail, has been determined at 1.7 Angstrom resolution in a closed, inactive state. Interactions among domains, stabilized by binding of the phosphorylated tail to the SH2 domain, lock the molecule in a conformation that simultaneously disrupts the kinase active site and sequesters the binding surfaces of the SH2 and SH3 domains. The structure shows how appropriate cellular signals, or transforming mutations in v-Src, could break these interactions to produce an open, active kinase.