The antibacterial peptide microcin J25 (MccJ25) inhibits bacterial transcription by binding within, and obstructing, the nucleotide-uptake channel of bacterial RNA polymerase. Published covalent and three-dimensional structures indicate that MccJ25 is a 21-residue cycle. Here, we show that the published covalent and three-dimensional structures are incorrect, and that MccJ25 in fact is a 21-residue "lariat protoknot", consisting of an 8-residue cyclic segment followed by a 13-residue linear segment that loops back and threads through the cyclic segment. MccJ25 is the first example of a lariat protoknot involving a backbone-side chain amide linkage. Copyright © 2003 American Chemical Society.