The organization of mature Rous sarcoma virus as studied by cryoelectron microscopy

We have studied the organization of mature infectious Rous sarcoma virus (RSV), suspended in vitreous ice, using transmission electron microscopy. The enveloped virions are spherical in shape, have a mean diameter of 127 nm, and vary significantly in size. Image processing reveals the presence of the viral matrix protein underlying the lipid bilayer and the viral envelope proteins external to the lipid bilayer. In the interior of the virus, the characteristic mature retroviral core is clearly imaged. In contrast to lentiviruses, such as human immunodeficiency virus, the core of RSV is essentially isometric. The capsid, or external shell of the core, has a faceted, almost polygonal appearance in electron micrographs, but many capsids also exhibit continuous surface curvature. Cores are not uniform in size or shape. Serrations observed along the projected faces of the core suggest a repetitive molecular structure. Some isolated cores were observed in the sample, confirming that cores are at least transiently stable in the absence of the viral envelope. Using an approach grounded in geometric probability, we estimate the size of the viral core from the projection data. We show that the size of the core is not tightly controlled and that core size and virion size are positively correlated. From estimates of RNA packing density we conclude that either the RNA within the core is loosely packed or, more probably, that it does not fill the core.