Crystal structure of a nematode-infecting virus.

ABSTRACT: Orsay, the first virus discovered to naturally infect Caenorhabditis elegans or any nematode, has a bipartite, positive-sense RNA genome. Sequence analyses show that Orsay is related to nodaviruses, but molecular characterizations of Orsay reveal several unique features, such as the expression of a capsid-δ fusion protein and the use of an ATG-independent mechanism for translation initiation. Here we report the crystal structure of an Orsay virus-like particle assembled from recombinant capsid protein (CP). Orsay capsid has a T = 3 icosahedral symmetry with 60 trimeric surface spikes. Each CP can be divided into three regions: an N-terminal arm that forms an extended protein interaction network at the capsid interior, an S domain with a jelly-roll, β-barrel fold forming the continuous caps

SUBMITTER: Guo YR 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC4156749 | biostudies-literature | 2014 Sep

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature