title: Controlled encapsidation of gold nanoparticles by a viral protein shell.
abstract: Icosahedral virus capsids demonstrate a high degree of selectivity in packaging cognate nucleic acid components during assembly. This packaging specificity, when integrated as part of a nanotechnological protocol, has the potential to encapsidate a wide array of foreign materials for delivery of therapeutics or biosensors into target cells. Red clover necrotic mosaic virus (RCNMV) exclusively packages two genomic ssRNAs initiated by a specific protein:RNA interaction between the RCNMV coat protein (CP) and the viral RNA origin of assembly (OAS) element. In the present work, an oligonucleotide mimic of the RCNMV OAS sequences is attached to Au nanoparticles as a recognition signal to initiate the virion-like assembly by RCNMV CP. Covalent linkage of the OAS to Au functions as a trigger for specific encapsidation and demonstrates that foreign cargo can be packaged into RCNMV virions.
authors.affiliation: Department of Plant Pathology, North Carolina State University, Raleigh, North Carolina 27695, USA.
authors.forename: Lina
authors.initials: L
authors.lastname: Loo
authors.forename: Richard H
authors.initials: RH
authors.lastname: Guenther
authors.forename: Veronica R
authors.initials: VR
authors.lastname: Basnayake
authors.forename: Steven A
authors.initials: SA
authors.lastname: Lommel
authors.forename: Stefan
authors.initials: S
authors.lastname: Franzen
mesh_terms: D036022:Capsid Proteins / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000235:genetics; D004279:DNA, Viral / Q000737:chemistry / Q000235:genetics; D006046:Gold / Q000737:chemistry*; D053768:Metal Nanoparticles / Q000737:chemistry*; D046529:Microscopy, Electron, Transmission; D012367:RNA, Viral / Q000737:chemistry / Q000235:genetics; D019183:Tombusviridae / Q000737:chemistry* / Q000235:genetics
chemical_list: D036022:Capsid Proteins; D004279:DNA, Viral; D012367:RNA, Viral; D006046:Gold