NIH R01 · 2025
Structure and Function of Essential Nucleoprotein Complexes Along a Viral Genome Packaging Pathway
PROJECT SUMMARY A key step in the assembly of the large double-stranded DNA (dsDNA) viruses is packaging of a genome into a pre-assembled procapsid by an ATP-driven motor complex. In the herpesviruses and many bacteriophages, packaging is catalyzed by a terminase enzyme that utilizes a concatemeric genome substrate. To accomplish this, terminase enzymes assemble into distinct initiation, motor and termination complexes to processively excise an individual genome from the concatemer, and concomitantly package it into the capsid. This requires that the enzymes cycle between stable nuclease and dynamic motor intermediates. While our understanding of packaging initiation and motor translocation…
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