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Structural changes in a marine podovirus associated with release of its genome into Prochlorococcus

Xiangan Liu1, Qinfen Zhang, Kazuyoshi Murata

  • 1National Center for Macromolecular Imaging, Verna and Marrs McLean Department of Biochemistry & Molecular Biology, Baylor College of Medicine, Houston, Texas, USA.

Nature Structural & Molecular Biology
|June 15, 2010
PubMed

Insights

Podovirus P-SSP7 infects abundant marine cyanobacteria. Cryo-EM reveals structural changes in the virus upon host cell binding, triggering DNA release and infection.

Area of Science:

  • Microbiology
  • Structural Biology
  • Oceanography

Background:

  • Prochlorococcus marinus is the most abundant photosynthetic microorganism in oceans.
  • Podovirus P-SSP7 is a virus that infects Prochlorococcus marinus.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To determine the structure of Podovirus P-SSP7 using cryo-electron microscopy.
  • To elucidate the mechanism of P-SSP7 infection and DNA release in Prochlorococcus.

Main Methods:

  • Single-particle cryo-electron microscopy (cryo-EM) was used to obtain high-resolution structures.
  • Cryo-electron tomography (cryo-ET) was employed to study virus-host interactions.

Main Results:

  • Icosahedral and asymmetrical structures of infectious P-SSP7 were resolved at 4.6-Å and 9-Å resolution.
  • Structural changes were observed in infectious vs. empty particles, including alterations in the portal vertex, nozzle, tail fibers, and core proteins.
  • Cryo-ET showed tail fiber conformation in infected cells matched empty particles, suggesting a role in triggering DNA release.

Conclusions:

  • The study proposes a mechanism for P-SSP7 DNA release involving tail fiber-induced structural changes upon host cell binding.
  • These alterations cascade through the portal vertex complex, leading to genome ejection.

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