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Alternative In Vitro Methods for the Determination of Viral Capsid Structural Integrity
12:57

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Published on: November 16, 2017

Built-in mechanical stress in viral shells.

C Carrasco1, A Luque, M Hernando-Pérez

  • 1Instituto de Ciencia de Materiales de Madrid, Consejo Superior de Investigaciones Cientificas, Madrid, Spain.

Biophysical Journal
|February 16, 2011
PubMed
Summary
This summary is machine-generated.

The mechanical properties of bacteriophage shells are crucial for their function. Researchers discovered that the φ29 bacteriophage prohead is anisotropic, being stiffer along its short axis due to built-in residual stress.

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Area of Science:

  • Biophysics
  • Structural Biology
  • Virology

Background:

  • Mechanical properties of biological molecular aggregates are vital for function.
  • Double-stranded DNA viruses, like bacteriophage φ29, must withstand high internal pressures and utilize stored elastic energy for DNA translocation.
  • Understanding viral capsid mechanics is key to deciphering their life cycle and developing antiviral strategies.

Purpose of the Study:

  • To investigate the mechanical properties of empty bacteriophage φ29 proheads.
  • To determine if the stiffness of the viral shell is uniform or anisotropic.
  • To explore the underlying mechanisms contributing to the observed mechanical behavior.

Main Methods:

  • Atomic force microscopy (AFM) was employed to probe the stiffness of φ29 proheads.
  • Coarse-grained simulations were utilized to model the viral shell and investigate the role of residual stress.
  • Mechanical testing was performed along different axes of the prolated viral structure.

Main Results:

  • Empty φ29 bacteriophage proheads exhibit anisotropic stiffness, being approximately two times stiffer along the short axis compared to the long axis.
  • This anisotropic behavior deviates from predictions based on standard continuum elasticity.
  • Coarse-grained simulations confirmed the presence of residual stress within the prohead shell, explaining the observed stiffness anisotropy.

Conclusions:

  • The φ29 bacteriophage prohead possesses an intrinsic anisotropic stiffness attributed to built-in residual stress.
  • This residual stress likely enhances the mechanical robustness of the viral shell, aiding in DNA compaction and survival under various extracellular conditions.
  • The findings offer insights into viral mechanics and potential strategies for engineering resilient biological nanomaterials.