The crystal structure of fructose-1,6-bisphosphatase (EC 3.1.3.11) complexed with the product fructose 6-phosphate (F6P) has been refied at 2.1-A resolution to an R factor of 0.177 with root-mean-square deviations of 0.014 A and 2.9°from the ideal geometries of bond lengths and bond angles, respectively. The secondary structues but not the trace of the unligated enzyme have been slightly revised in the F6P complex at this higher resolution. Helix H4 in the unligated structure has been refined to a helix-like coil, and two very short 310 helices have been found, one in H4 and one in H5. F6P at 10 mM concentration in the absence ofdivalent metals in our study shows major binding at the active site and minor binding at the AMP site. The major site has almost equal full occupancy in the C1 and C2 chains of the crystallographic asymmetric unit, while the minor site shows occupancy only in the C1 chain at about 50%. The electron density in both (2Fo -Fc) and (Fo -Fr) maps calculated by omitting F6P slightly favors the 13 anomer of D-F6P over the a anomer. Possible functions of the active-site residues are discussed, and candidates are suggested for site-directed mutagenesis.Fructose-1,6-bisphosphatase (Fru-1,6-Pase; EC 3.1.3.11), a key regulatory enzyme in gluconeogenesis, catalyzes the hydrolysis of fructose 1,6-bisphosphate (Fru-1,6-P2) to fructose 6-phosphate (F6P) and inorganic phosphate. A divalent metal ion (e.g., Mg2' or Mn2+) is a necessary cofactor for the enzymatic reaction. The catalytic and regulatory properties of the enzyme from various sources have been extensively studied (1-4). Two inhibitors, AMP and fructose 2,6-bisphosphate , control the activity of Fru-1,6-Pase. The inhibition by AMP is allosteric (5). However, controversial views from kinetic experiments suggest that Fru-2,6-P2 binds to the active site (4), to an allosteric site (3), or to both (6). Eight complete amino acid sequences have been reported (7-13). The sequence homology among the mammalian enzymes is >85% in comparison to about 45% homology among all Fru-1,6-Pases.Fru-1,6-Pase is a tetrameric molecule with four identical polypeptide chains that aggregates into a flat hexagonal disk with D2 symmetry (Fig. 1). Three-dimensional structures have been described for the crystals of the unligated Fru-1,6-Pase and an active-site complex (Fru-2,6-P2 or a hydrolyzed product) (14, 15), the F6P-AMP-Mg2+ complex (16), and the AMP complex (17). The two T-form structures show AMP binding to the allosteric site, which is about 28 A from the active site of the enzyme, and suggest possible allosteric mechanisms of AMP inhibition (17, 18).The F6P complex has essentially the same secondary and quaternary structures as the unligated enzyme. Conformations of some loops that have random coil configurations have been repositioned during the refinement of the F6P structure and are described in detail here. t On the basis ofthe structure, a partial list of amino acids that are important for the activity of the enzyme is suggested for site-directed mu...