Related papers: Effects of RNA branching on the electrostatic stab…
Under many in vitro conditions, some small viruses spontaneously encapsidate a single stranded (ss) RNA into a protein shell called the capsid. While viral RNAs are found to be compact and highly branched because of long distance…
Simple RNA viruses efficiently encapsulate their genome into a nano-sized protein shell: the capsid. Spontaneous co-assembly of the genome and the capsid proteins is driven predominantly by electrostatic interactions between the negatively…
Single-stranded RNA viruses efficiently encapsulate their genome into a protein shell called the capsid. Electrostatic interactions between the positive charges in the capsid protein's N-terminal tail and the negatively charged genome have…
Electrostatic interactions play a central role in the assembly of single-stranded RNA viruses. Under physiological conditions of salinity and acidity, virus capsid assembly requires the presence of genomic material that is oppositely…
Simple RNA viruses self-assemble spontaneously and encapsulate their genome into a shell called the capsid. This process is mainly driven by the attractive electrostatic interaction between the positive charges on capsid proteins and the…
Many simple RNA viruses enclose their genetic material by a protein shell called the capsid. While the capsid structures are well characterized for most viruses, the structure of RNA inside the shells and the factors contributing to it…
Single-stranded (ss) RNA viruses self-assemble spontaneously in solutions that contain the viral RNA genome molecules and the viral capsid proteins. The self-assembly of empty capsids can be understood on the basis of free energy…
During the lifecycle of many single-stranded RNA viruses, including many human pathogens, a protein shell called the capsid spontaneously assembles around the viral genome. Understanding the mechanisms by which capsid proteins selectively…
Viruses self-assemble from identical capsid proteins and their genome consisting, for example, of a long single stranded (ss) RNA. For a big class of T = 3 viruses capsid proteins have long positive N-terminal tails. We explore the role…
Single-stranded (ss) RNA viruses self-assemble spontaneously in solutions that contain the viral RNA genome molecules and viral capsid proteins. The self-assembly of empty capsids can be understood on the basis of free energy minimization.…
The encapsulation of polyanions, whether single-stranded RNAs or synthetic polymers, is primarily driven by attractive electrostatic interactions between the positively charged, structurally disordered RNA-binding domains of virus coat…
We examine the limits on viral composition that are set by the electrostatic interactions effected by the charge on the viral proteins, the single-stranded viral RNA molecule and monovalent salt ions in the solution. Within the mean-field…
We summarize some aspects of electrostatic interactions in the context of viruses. A simplified but, within well defined limitations, reliable approach is used to derive expressions for electrostatic energies and the corresponding osmotic…
We propose a description for the quasi-equilibrium self-assembly of small, single-stranded (ss) RNA viruses whose capsid proteins (CPs) have flexible, positively charged, disordered tails that associate with the negatively charged RNA…
A big class of viruses self-assemble from a large number of identical capsid proteins with long flexible N-terminal tails and ss RNA. We study the role of the strong Coulomb interaction of positive N-terminal tails with ss RNA in the…
Myriad viruses use positive-strand RNA molecules as their genomes. Far from being only a repository of genetic material, viral RNA performs numerous other functions mediated by its physical structure and chemical properties. In this…
The structural organisation of the viral genome within its protein container, called the viral capsid, is an important aspect of virus architecture. Many single-stranded (ss) RNA viruses organise a significant part of their genome in a…
The problem of RNA genomes packaged inside spherical viruses is studied. The viral capsid is modeled as a hollowed sphere. The attraction between RNA molecules and the inner viral capsid is assumed to be non-specific and occurs at the inner…
We study the statistical mechanics of RNA secondary structures designed to have an attraction between two different types of structures as a model system for heteropolymer aggregation. The competition between the branching entropy of the…
The formation of a viral capsid -- the highly-ordered protein shell that surrounds the genome of a virus -- is the canonical example of self-assembly. The capsids of many positive-sense RNA viruses spontaneously assemble from in vitro…