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Related Experiment Video

Updated: Jun 25, 2026

Generation and Assembly of Virus-Specific Nucleocapsids of the Respiratory Syncytial Virus

Generation and Assembly of Virus-Specific Nucleocapsids of the Respiratory Syncytial Virus

Published on: July 27, 2021

Knot-controlled ejection of a polymer from a virus capsid.

Richard Matthews¹, A A Louis, J M Yeomans

¹Rudolf Peierls Centre for Theoretical Physics, 1 Keble Road, Oxford 0X1 3NP, England, United Kingdom.

Physical Review Letters

|March 5, 2009

Summary

Polymer knotting significantly impacts ejection from viruslike capsids. Complex knots slow ejection, with knot type, not flexibility, determining the rate for large knots.

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In Vitro Disassembly of Influenza A Virus Capsids by Gradient Centrifugation

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Published on: March 27, 2016

Area of Science:

Polymer physics
Biophysics
Computational modeling

Background:

Viral capsids package and eject genetic material.
Polymer knotting is a complex topological state.
Understanding ejection dynamics is crucial for virology and nanotechnology.

Purpose of the Study:

To investigate the influence of polymer knotting on ejection dynamics from a confined space.
To determine how knot complexity and polymer flexibility affect ejection rates.
To relate numerical findings to biological processes like DNA ejection from viruses.

Main Methods:

Numerical simulations of flexible and semiflexible polymers.
Modeling ejection from a spherical, viruslike capsid.
Analysis of knot topology and its effect on ejection kinetics.

Main Results:

Ejection rate is primarily governed by the polymer knot.
Knots act as ratchets, controlling the exit process.
More complex knots lead to slower ejection rates.
For large knots, knot type dominates over polymer flexibility in determining ejection speed.

Conclusions:

Polymer knotting is a key factor in ejection dynamics from viral capsids.
The observed ratcheting mechanism suggests a role in controlled release.
This process may offer a biological advantage for unknotting DNA before cellular entry.