title: Structural virology. Near-atomic cryo-EM structure of the helical measles virus nucleocapsid.
abstract: Measles is a highly contagious human disease. We used cryo-electron microscopy and single particle-based helical image analysis to determine the structure of the helical nucleocapsid formed by the folded domain of the measles virus nucleoprotein encapsidating an RNA at a resolution of 4.3 angstroms. The resulting pseudoatomic model of the measles virus nucleocapsid offers important insights into the mechanism of the helical polymerization of nucleocapsids of negative-strand RNA viruses, in particular via the exchange subdomains of the nucleoprotein. The structure reveals the mode of the nucleoprotein-RNA interaction and explains why each nucleoprotein of measles virus binds six nucleotides, whereas the respiratory syncytial virus nucleoprotein binds seven. It provides a rational basis for further analysis of measles virus replication and transcription, and reveals potential targets for drug design.
authors.affiliation: CNRS, Unit for Virus Host-Cell Interactions, 38042 Grenoble, France. Université Grenoble Alpes, Unit for Virus Host-Cell Interactions, 38042 Grenoble, France. gutsche@embl.fr.
authors.forename: Irina
authors.initials: I
authors.lastname: Gutsche
authors.affiliation: Structural and Computational Biology Unit, European Molecular Biology Laboratory, 69917 Heidelberg, Germany.
authors.forename: Ambroise
authors.initials: A
authors.lastname: Desfosses
authors.affiliation: CNRS, Unit for Virus Host-Cell Interactions, 38042 Grenoble, France. Université Grenoble Alpes, Unit for Virus Host-Cell Interactions, 38042 Grenoble, France.
authors.forename: Grégory
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Effantin
authors.affiliation: Université Grenoble Alpes, IBS, 38044 Grenoble, France. CNRS, IBS, 38044 Grenoble, France. CEA, IBS, 38044 Grenoble, France.
authors.forename: Wai Li
authors.initials: WL
authors.lastname: Ling
authors.affiliation: Institut Laue-Langevin, 38000 Grenoble, France.
authors.forename: Melina
authors.initials: M
authors.lastname: Haupt
authors.affiliation: CNRS, Unit for Virus Host-Cell Interactions, 38042 Grenoble, France. Université Grenoble Alpes, Unit for Virus Host-Cell Interactions, 38042 Grenoble, France.
authors.forename: Rob W H
authors.initials: RW
authors.lastname: Ruigrok
authors.affiliation: Structural and Computational Biology Unit, European Molecular Biology Laboratory, 69917 Heidelberg, Germany.
authors.forename: Carsten
authors.initials: C
authors.lastname: Sachse
authors.affiliation: CNRS, Unit for Virus Host-Cell Interactions, 38042 Grenoble, France. Université Grenoble Alpes, Unit for Virus Host-Cell Interactions, 38042 Grenoble, France. Université Grenoble Alpes, IBS, 38044 Grenoble, France. CNRS, IBS, 38044 Grenoble, France. CEA, IBS, 38044 Grenoble, France.
authors.forename: Guy
authors.initials: G
authors.lastname: Schoehn
mesh_terms: D000595:Amino Acid Sequence; D020285:Cryoelectron Microscopy; D006801:Humans; D008457:Measles / Q000821:virology*; D008459:Measles virus / Q000737:chemistry / Q000648:ultrastructure*; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D009690:Nucleic Acid Conformation; D019251:Nucleocapsid / Q000737:chemistry / Q000648:ultrastructure*; D019590:Nucleocapsid Proteins; D009698:Nucleoproteins / Q000737:chemistry / Q000648:ultrastructure; D017433:Protein Structure, Secondary; D012367:RNA, Viral / Q000737:chemistry / Q000648:ultrastructure; D014764:Viral Proteins / Q000737:chemistry / Q000648:ultrastructure
chemical_list: D019590:Nucleocapsid Proteins; D009698:Nucleoproteins; D012367:RNA, Viral; D014764:Viral Proteins; C058314:nucleoprotein, Measles virus