Virus Maturation

David Veesler, John E. Johnson
2012 Annual Review of Biophysics  
We examined virus maturation of selected non-enveloped and enveloped ssRNA viruses; retroviruses; bacteriophages and herpes virus. Processes associated with maturation in the RNA viruses range from subtle (noda and picornaviruses) to dramatic (tetraviruses and togaviruses). The elaborate assembly and maturation pathway of HIV is discussed in contrast to the less sophisticated but highly efficient processes associated with togaviruses. Bacteriophage assembly and maturation are discussed in
more » ... l terms with specific examples chosen for emphasis. Finally the herpes viruses are compared with bacteriophages. The data support divergent evolution of noda, picorna and tetraviruses from a common ancestor and divergent evolution of alpha and flaviviruses from a common ancestor. Likewise, bacteriophages and herpes viruses almost certainly share a common ancestor in their evolution. Comparing all the viruses, we conclude that maturation is a convergent process that is required to solve conflicting requirements in biological dynamics and function.
doi:10.1146/annurev-biophys-042910-155407 pmid:22404678 pmcid:PMC3607295 fatcat:ng2xo7eksjfm5bq64ybz22ovku