Membrane assembly during the infection cycle of the giant Mimivirus.

ABSTRACT: Although extensively studied, the structure, cellular origin and assembly mechanism of internal membranes during viral infection remain unclear. By combining diverse imaging techniques, including the novel Scanning-Transmission Electron Microscopy tomography, we elucidate the structural stages of membrane biogenesis during the assembly of the giant DNA virus Mimivirus. We show that this elaborate multistage process occurs at a well-defined zone localized at the periphery of large viral factories that are generated in the host cytoplasm. Membrane biogenesis is initiated by fusion of multiple vesicles, ~70 nm in diameter, that apparently derive from the host ER network and enable continuous supply of lipid components to the membrane-assembly zone. The resulting multivesicular bodies subseque

SUBMITTER: Mutsafi Y 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC3667779 | biostudies-literature | 2013

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature