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Another platform that has been exploited for the encapsulation of foreign
cargo is
Hibiscus chlorotic ringspot virus
(HCRSV). Similar to the CCMV
self-assembly approach, coat protein monomers of HCRSV were mixed
with negatively charged polymers, such as polystyrenesulfonic acid (PSA)
and polyacrylic acid (PAA). Re-assembly yielded VLPs encapsulating the
Figure 5.2
Transmission electron microgrographs of CCMV capsids formed in self-
assembly reactions. Samples were stained with 2% uranyl acetate. (a) VLPs formed
with 700-kDa polystyrene sulfonate (PSS). The mean capsid size for VLPs is 22 nm.
(b) VLPs formed with 3.4 MDa PSS. The mean capsid size is 27 nm. (c) Empty CCMV
capsids formed by dialysis of CP in buffer with high salt and low pH. The dark core
in the center indicates the penetration of stain into ''void'' (aqueous solution) space,
which is notably absent in the interiors of VLPs filled with PSS. (d) wt CCMV capsids
in virus suspension buffer. Scale bars are 50 nm. Reproduced with permission from
Hu, Y., Zandi, R., Anavitarte, A., Knobler, C. M., and Gelbart W. M. (2008) Packaging of
a polymer by a viral capsid: the interplay between polymer length and capsid size,
Biophys. J.
,
94
(4), 1428-1436.
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