Virus Structure

Lecture by Dr. Fahed Parvaiz

Contents
1. Virus genome structures

2. Virus capsid structures

• The unique identity of virus
 Genome
 Capsid
 Functional integrity----enzymes,
proteins and lipids.
 Viruses make use of different
strategies to gain access to
respective host cells.
 Viral structure is critically essential
to understand the fundamentals of
virology.
Viral genome identification
Virus genomes
• A virus contains DNA or RNA as its genetic material.
• Each nucleic acid is either single stranded or double
stranded.
• Four main categories of viral genomes:
i. ssDNA
ii. dsDNA
iii. ssRNA
iv. dsRNA
• Viruses can also be
classified as linear,
circular, free or
covalently linked 5’ and
3’-end.
Modifications at the ends of viral genomes
• In certain cases, viral genomes
favor modifications at their
ends.
• Some genome RNAs have one
or both of the modifications
that occur in eukaryotic
messenger RNAs (mRNAs): a
methylated nucleotide cap at
the 5 end and a sequence of
adenosine residues (a
polyadenylate tail; poly(A)
tail) at the 3 end.
• Mainly, the capping at 5’-
end and poly (A) tail at 3’-
end shows mRNA.
• In certain viruses, genomic
RNA may function as
mRNA after infection.
• Nevertheless, all of the
ssRNA functions as mRNA
yet don’t have a cap or poly
(A).
• Mostly, there is single nucleic
acid molecule. Segmented genomes

• In certain cases, viruses complete

their genome in multiple nucleic
acid molecules.
• Such viruses are termed as
segmented.
• For example:
• Influenza virus
Influenza Virus
Repeat Sequences
Viral proteins
• In addition to the viral genome, virions consists of
various proteins.
• Some of these proteins are covalently linked at the
terminal regions of genome.
• Two integral components of viral proteins:
1. Structural proteins

2. Non-Structural proteins
Structural Proteins
1. Formation of viral capsids.
2. Protection of the virus genome
3. Attachment of the virion to a host cell (for many viruses)
4. Fusion of the virion envelope to a cell membrane (for
enveloped viruses).
5. Some structural proteins favor disease pathogenesis,
even carcinogenesis.
Non-Structural Proteins
1. Enzymes, e.g. protease, reverse transcriptase
2. Transcription factors
3. Primers for nucleic acid replication
4. Interference with the immune response of the
host.
5. Pathogenesis
 Assignment

Role of Structural/Non-structural
proteins of nCOV-2.
 II. Viral Capsid Structure
Q. Why do viruses need to build a particle to protect their
genomes?

A. It’s a dangerous world out there!

-proteolytic and nucleolytic enzymes

-extremes of pH

-extremes of temperature

-various forms of natural radiation (UV)

-shearing by mechanical forces

There are other important considerations when
thinking about virus particles:
-the particle must be stable enough to protect the nucleic
acid when in the extracellular environment, however, virus
particles also mediate the attachment of the virus to an
appropriate host cell and deliver the genome to the interior
of that cell, where the particle is at least partially
disassembled.

-genetic economy: the information necessary to specify

the structural proteins must not exhaust the coding
capacity of the genome.
 papovavirus rhabdovirus herpesvirus

Virion The mature infectious virus particle

Capsid The protein shell that encloses and protects the viral nucleic acid
Capsomere The morphological unit of the icosahedral capsid
Core The internal part of the virus particle that consists of the nucleic
acid and closely associated proteins.
Nucleocapsid The structure composed of the capsid containing the nucleic acid
or core
Envelope The viral membrane consisting of a lipid bilayer containing spike
proteins.
Spike proteins Viral glycoproteins that project from the envelope
The Capsid:
A capsid is not a stable “brick”. It is a molecular machine, a
selective genome delivery device. Furthermore, there
must be a mechanism for selective incorporation of the
viral genome into the capsid.

Viruses have evolved two general mechanisms for

packaging their genomes.

-Helical Capsids
-Capsids with icosahedral symmetry
Viruses with helical capsids

- many plant viruses and bacteriophages have helical capsids.

-Naked helical (i.e. non-enveloped) animal viruses have never

been found.

-Enveloped animal viruses with helical capsids….genome is

always RNA and never DNA.

-Some helical capsids are rigid, others are more flexible.

Many different
RNA viruses
build
nucleocapsids
using helical
symmetry. The
dimensions of
these
nucleocapsids
can vary between
different types of
viruses.
The structure of TMV
Helical capsids are “open structures”, the
ends of the rod are not sealed.
Icosahedral symmetry:

Icosahedrons are twenty-sided geometrical structures that form a

sphere. The basic “building block” of the icosahedron is the triangle.

Virus capsids are usually not “perfect” icosahedrons, however, their

structures are built using similar geometric principles.

Science World Vancouver, Canada

 Why do some viruses have an envelope?
Most enveloped viruses acquire their envelope by budding through a
membrane of the host cell into some extra-cytoplasmic compartment. By
contrast, non-enveloped viruses generally escape by lysis of the infected
cell. Cell lysis is terminal. Thus enveloped viruses do not necessarily have
to kill the cell in the course of their replication.

The presence of an envelope also provides viruses with an opportunity to

insert virally encoded glycoproteins (spikes) into the envelope. These
glycoproteins can play roles in multiple facets of the virus lifecycle
including:

- entry and host range determination

- assembly and egress
- evasion from the vertebrate immune system