Publication Date:
2019-06-10
Description:
Noroviruses are a leading cause of foodborne illnesses worldwide. Although GII.4 strains have been responsible for most norovirus outbreaks, the assembled virus shell structures have been available in detail for only a single strain (GI.1). We present high-resolution (2.6- to 4.1-Å) cryoelectron microscopy (cryo-EM) structures of GII.4, GII.2, GI.7, and GI.1 human norovirus outbreak strain virus-like particles (VLPs). Although norovirus VLPs have been thought to exist in a single-sized assembly, our structures reveal polymorphism between and within genogroups, with small, medium, and large particle sizes observed. Using asymmetric reconstruction, we were able to resolve a Zn2+metal ion adjacent to the coreceptor binding site, which affected the structural stability of the shell. Our structures serve as valuable templates for facilitating vaccine formulations.
Print ISSN:
0027-8424
Electronic ISSN:
1091-6490
Topics:
Biology
,
Medicine
,
Natural Sciences in General
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