Preliminary X-Ray Data Analysis of Crystalline Cowpea Chlorotic Mottle Virus

• Published in: Virology (New York, N.Y.) Vol. 193; no. 1; pp. 234 - 241
• Main Authors: Speir, J.A., Munshi, S., Baker, T.S., Johnson, J.E.
• Format: Journal Article
• Language: English
• Published: San Diego, CA Elsevier Inc 01.03.1993; Elsevier
• Subjects: Biological and medical sciences; BROMOVIRUS; CRECIMIENTO; CROISSANCE; Crystallization; Fundamental and applied biological sciences. Psychology; Image Processing, Computer-Assisted; Microbiology; MINERALOGIA; MINERALOGIE; Morphology, structure, chemical composition, physicochemical properties; Plant Viruses - chemistry; Plant Viruses - ultrastructure; RNA Viruses - chemistry; RNA Viruses - ultrastructure; TECHNIQUE ANALYTIQUE; TECNICAS ANALITICAS; Virion - chemistry; Virion - ultrastructure; Virology; VIRUS DE LAS PLANTAS; VIRUS DES VEGETAUX; X-Ray Diffraction - methods; Plant pathogen; Two dimensional structure; Crystals; Rotation axis; X ray diffraction; Modeling; Bromovirus; Virus; Investigation method; Morphology; Cowpea chlorotic mottle virus; Crystalline structure; Symmetry
• ISSN: 0042-6822; 1096-0341
• DOI: 10.1006/viro.1993.1119

Crystals of cowpea chlorotic mottle virus (CCMV) that diffract X-rays to 3.1 Å resolution were grown in a succinate-PEG solution buffered at pH 3.3. The crystals are in space group P212121 with unit cell dimensions of a = 381.26 Å, b = 381.26 Å, and c = 408.59 Å. Four particles occupy the unit cell, placing a single virion in the crystallographic asymmetric unit. Diffraction intensities measured from 196 films collected at the Cornell High Energy Synchrotron Source accounted for 55% of the theoretically possible data to 3.2 Å. Unit cell dimensions and rotation function analyses of the X-ray data revealed that the particles were organized in a pseudo-tetragonal relationship with the pseudo-fourfold axis along the crystal c axis. Analysis of electron micrographs of two-dimensional crystals of CCMV revealed a remarkable similarity between these and planes of particles perpendicular to the crystallographic c axis in the three-dimensional crystal.