Sedimentation of multicomponent viruses: evaluation of sedimentation coefficient ratios

Ratios of the sedimentation coefficients for alfalfa mosaic virus components are shown to be independent of the virus concentration and the density of the solvent. Different numbers of components are observed in solvents of different density. This implies that in sedimentation velocity experiments an estimate of the number of components of a multicomponent virus should involve centrifugation in solvents of different density. For some viruses, estimates of the sedimentation coefficients of individual components can be obtained from the coefficient ratios observed in unfractionated solutions and the sedimentation coefficient of the most easily purified component.