Xylanases (1,4-beta-D-xylan xylanhydrolases; E.C. 3.2.1.8) hydrolyze the 1,4-beta-D-xylopyranosyl linkage of xylans. The structural characterization of xylanase active sites is of great interest, since it can lead to a better understanding of their catalytic mechanism and contribute significant knowledge to the rational design of specific oligosaccharide-binding sites via protein engineering. An intracellular xylanase gene (xynA2) from Bacillus stearothermophilus T-6 has recently been cloned and sequenced. The xynA2 gene encodes for an intracellular enzyme (IXT6) of 331 amino acids, with a calculated molecular weight of 38 639 Da and a pI of 5.72. Based on sequence homology, the enzyme belongs to family 10 of the glycosyl hydrolases. The xynA2 gene product (IXT6) was overproduced in Escherichia coli and purified to homogeneity. Crystallographic studies of IXT6 were initiated in order to study the specificity and mechanism of catalysis of this unique xylanase, as well as to provide a structural basis for rational introduction of enhanced thermostability by site-specific mutagenesis. The M1 crystal form was found to be the most suitable for detailed crystal structure analysis. These crystals belong to a C--centered monoclinic crystal system (space group C2) with unit-cell parameters a = 170.6, b = 82.5, c = 80.0 A, beta = 91.43 degrees. They are mechanically strong, are fairly stable in the X-ray beam and diffract X--rays to better than 2.5 A resolution. A full 2.9 A resolution diffraction data set (97.9% completeness, R(merge) = 8.4%) has recently been collected from one crystal at room temperature using X-ray synchrotron radiation (lambda = 1.125 A) and a MAR300 imaging-plate area detector. A comparable 2.5 A data set was measured at 90 K using a rotating-anode X-ray source and an R-AXIS IIc imaging-plate area detector (97.2% completeness, R(merge) = 6.9%). Molecular-replacement studies and multiple anomalous dispersion (MAD) experiments are currently in progress in order to determine the detailed three-dimensional structure of IXT6.