capsid

Exaptation: A cell enzyme becomes a viral capsid protein

The acquisition of a capsid is thought to be a key event in the evolution of viruses from the self-replicating genetic elements that existed during the pre-cellular stage on Earth. The origin of viral capsids has been obscure because their components are not similar to cellular proteins. The discovery that a viral capsid protein evolved from …

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TWiV 342: Public epitope #1

On episode #342 of the science show This Week in Virology, the TWiVniks discuss the structure of a virus that reproduces in an extreme environment, long-term consequences of Ebolavirus infection, and VirScan, a method to identify the different virus infections you have had in your lifetime. You can find TWiV #342 at www.microbe.tv/twiv.

Viral supercomputer simulations

Jason Roberts, a virologist at the Victorian Infectious Disease Reference Laboratory in Melbourne, Australia, creates three-dimensional simulations of viruses showing how the molecules that make up the capsid and genome might move in very short periods of time. I visited Jason in his laboratory at the newly constructed Peter Doherty Institute, to learn how he develops …

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TWiV 272: Give peas a chance

On episode #272 of the science show This Week in Virology, the TWiV team describes aphid control by using a viral capsid protein to deliver a spider toxin to plants, and a human endogenous retrovirus that enhances expression of a neuronal gene. You can find TWiV #272 at www.microbe.tv/twiv.

TWiV 261: Giants among viruses

On episode #261 of the science show This Week in Virology, Vincent meets up with Chantal and Jean-Michel at the first International Symposium on Giant Virus Biology in Tegernsee, Germany, to discuss their work on Mimivirus, Megavirus, and Pandoravirus. You can find TWiV #261 at www.microbe.tv/twiv.

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