Nucleotide-dependent DNA gripping and an end-clamp mechanism regulate the bacteriophage T4 viral packaging motor

Mariam Ordyan; Istiaq Alam; Marthandan Mahalingam; Venigalla B. Rao; Douglas E. Smith

doi:10.1038/s41467-018-07834-2

Nature Communications (Dec 2018)

Nucleotide-dependent DNA gripping and an end-clamp mechanism regulate the bacteriophage T4 viral packaging motor

Mariam Ordyan,
Istiaq Alam,
Marthandan Mahalingam,
Venigalla B. Rao,
Douglas E. Smith

Affiliations

Mariam Ordyan: Department of Physics, University of California, San Diego
Istiaq Alam: Department of Biology, The Catholic University of America
Marthandan Mahalingam: Department of Biology, The Catholic University of America
Venigalla B. Rao: Department of Biology, The Catholic University of America
Douglas E. Smith: Department of Physics, University of California, San Diego

DOI: https://doi.org/10.1038/s41467-018-07834-2
Journal volume & issue: Vol. 9, no. 1
pp. 1 – 9

Abstract

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Packaging of viral DNA depends on strong molecular motors that are powered by ATP hydrolysis. Here, the authors develop a single-molecule assay to monitor how nucleotide binding regulates motor-DNA interactions and reveal a generic mechanism that prevents exit of the whole DNA from the viral capsid during packaging.

Published in Nature Communications

ISSN: 2041-1723 (Online)
Publisher: Nature Portfolio
Country of publisher: United Kingdom
LCC subjects: Science
Website: https://www.nature.com/ncomms/

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