Breaking Symmetry in Viral Icosahedral Capsids as Seen through the Lenses of X-ray Crystallography and Cryo-Electron Microscopy

The majority of viruses on Earth form capsids built by multiple copies of one or more types of a coat protein arranged with 532 symmetry, generating an icosahedral shell. This highly repetitive structure is ideal to closely pack identical protein subunits and to enclose the nucleic acid genomes. How...

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Bibliographic Details
Main Authors: Kristin N. Parent, Jason R. Schrad, Gino Cingolani
Format: Article
Language:English
Published: MDPI AG 2018-02-01
Series:Viruses
Subjects:
Online Access:http://www.mdpi.com/1999-4915/10/2/67