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Virions of Pariacoto virus contain a minor protein translated from the second AUG codon of the capsid protein open reading frame

Department of Microbiology, University of Alabama at Birmingham, BBRB 373/17, 845 19th St South, Birmingham, AL 35294-2170, USA

Correspondence
L. Andrew Ball
andyb{at}uab.edu

Virions of the alphanodavirus Pariacoto virus (PaV) have T=3 icosahedral symmetry and are assembled from multiple copies of a precursor protein that is cleaved into two mature capsid proteins after assembly. The crystal structure of PaV shows that the N-terminal 30 amino acid residues of the subunits surrounding the 5-fold axes interact extensively with icosahedrally ordered regions of the encapsidated positive-sense genomic RNAs. We found that wild-type PaV particles also contain a minor capsid protein that is truncated by 24 residues at its N terminus. Reverse genetic experiments showed that translation of this protein initiated at the second AUG of the capsid protein open reading frame. When either the longer or shorter version of the capsid protein was expressed independently of the other, it assembled into virus particles and underwent maturational cleavage. Virions that lacked the shorter capsid protein retained infectivity for cultured insect cells and Galleria mellonella larvae.

This article has been cited by other articles:

				K. N. Johnson, L. Tang, J. E. Johnson, and L. A. Ball Heterologous RNA Encapsidated in Pariacoto Virus-Like Particles Forms a Dodecahedral Cage Similar to Genomic RNA in Wild-Type Virions J. Virol., October 15, 2004; 78(20): 11371 - 11378. [Abstract] [Full Text] [PDF]