Electrostatics-Driven Inflation of Elastic Icosahedral Shells as a Model for Swelling of Viruses

Božič, Anže; Šiber, Antonio

doi:10.1016/j.bpj.2018.07.032

Cited by 12 publications

(6 citation statements)

References 72 publications

(117 reference statements)

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“…Droplets can also vary in their pH [ 55 , 185 – 187 ], which can change with RH and with that affect the viability of aerosolized viruses by changing the electrostatic properties or conformation of viral proteins [ 146 , 188 – 193 ]. The response of enveloped viruses to changes in RH further depends on whether the process of fusion requires low pH or not [ 146 ].…”

Section: Viruses In Respiratory Dropletsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Relative humidity in droplet and airborne transmission of disease

Božič

Kanduč

2021

J Biol Phys

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A large number of infectious diseases are transmitted by respiratory droplets. How long these droplets persist in the air, how far they can travel, and how long the pathogens they might carry survive are all decisive factors for the spread of droplet-borne diseases. The subject is extremely multifaceted and its aspects range across different disciplines, yet most of them have only seldom been considered in the physics community. In this review, we discuss the physical principles that govern the fate of respiratory droplets and any viruses trapped inside them, with a focus on the role of relative humidity. Importantly, low relative humidity—as encountered, for instance, indoors during winter and inside aircraft—facilitates evaporation and keeps even initially large droplets suspended in air as aerosol for extended periods of time. What is more, relative humidity affects the stability of viruses in aerosol through several physical mechanisms such as efflorescence and inactivation at the air-water interface, whose role in virus inactivation nonetheless remains poorly understood. Elucidating the role of relative humidity in the droplet spread of disease would permit us to design preventive measures that could aid in reducing the chance of transmission, particularly in indoor environment.

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Section: Viruses In Respiratory Dropletsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Relative humidity in droplet and airborne transmission of disease

Božič

Kanduč

2021

J Biol Phys

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“…However, despite the increase in the FvK number, the observed Balloon state becomes more spherical. This can be straightforwardly understood within our framework as the (uncharged) shell with smaller elastic constants has mechanical properties similar to those of an actual balloon, while the inclusion of charges leads to its expansion, just as compressed air inside the balloon makes the balloon rounder 12 .…”

Section: Resultsmentioning

confidence: 98%

“…After DNA has been packaged, the genome-containing capsids exhibit pronounced icosahedral faceting 5 with symmetric capsid hexamers 6–8 . It is quite surprising then that the same morphological changes that occur in procapsids of bacteriophages during their maturation in vivo can be experimentally reproduced in vitro even in the absence of DNA 9 , solely by changing the pH of the bathing medium which strongly implicates the role of electrostatic interactions involved 10–12 .…”

Section: Introductionmentioning

confidence: 99%

pH-induced morphological changes of proteinaceous viral shells

Roshal

Konevtsova

Božič

et al. 2019

Sci Rep

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Changes in environmental pH can induce morphological changes in empty proteinaceous shells of bacteriophages in vitro that are very similar to changes occurring in viral capsids in vivo after encapsidation of DNA. These changes in capsid shape and size cannot be explained with a simple elastic model alone. We propose a new theoretical framework that combines the elasticity of thin icosahedral shells with the pH dependence of capsid charge distribution. Minimization of the sum of elastic and electrostatic free energies leads to equilibrium shapes of viral shells that depend on a single elastic parameter and the detailed configuration of the imbedded protein charges. Based on the in vitro shell reconstructions of bacteriophage HK97 we elucidate the details of how the reversible transition between Prohead II and Expansion Intermediate II states of the HK97 procapsid is induced by pH changes, as well as some other features of the bacteriophage maturation.

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“…In particular, the packed DNA can be to some approximation often described as effective physical pressure acting outwards, to expand the capsid [54]. The internal pressure both increases the mean radius of the capsid, inducing a kind of swelling, and smooths out the polygonal nature of the capsid a bit [54,55]. The virus proteins can also have shapes and active binding regions which promote spontaneous curvatures of their assemblies.…”

Section: The T-number and The Capsid Size And Shapementioning

confidence: 99%

Icosadeltahedral Geometry of Geodesic Domes, Fullerenes and Viruses: A Tutorial on the T-Number

Šiber

2020

Symmetry

Self Cite

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The Caspar–Klug (CK) classification of viruses is discussed by parallel examination of geometry of icosahedral geodesic domes, fullerenes, and viruses. The underlying symmetry of all structures is explained and thoroughly visually represented. Euler’s theorem on polyhedra is used to calculate the number of vertices, edges, and faces in domes, number of atoms, bonds, and pentagonal and hexagonal rings in fullerenes, and number of proteins and protein–protein contacts in viruses. The T-number, the characteristic for the CK classification, is defined and discussed. The superposition of fullerene and dome designs is used to obtain a representation of a CK virus with all the proteins indicated. Some modifications of the CK classifications are sketched, including elongation of the CK blueprint, fusion of two CK blueprints, dodecahedral view of the CK shapes, and generalized CK designs without a clearly visible geometry of the icosahedron. These are compared to cases of existing viruses.

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Electrostatics-Driven Inflation of Elastic Icosahedral Shells as a Model for Swelling of Viruses

Cited by 12 publications

References 72 publications

Relative humidity in droplet and airborne transmission of disease

Relative humidity in droplet and airborne transmission of disease

pH-induced morphological changes of proteinaceous viral shells

Icosadeltahedral Geometry of Geodesic Domes, Fullerenes and Viruses: A Tutorial on the T-Number

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