A viral structural protein is a viral protein that is a structural component of the mature virus.
Examples include the SARS coronavirus 3a and 7a accessory proteins.
Bacteriophage T4 structural proteins
During assembly of the bacteriophage (phage) T4 virion, the structural proteins encoded by the phage genes interact with each other in a characteristic sequence. Maintaining an appropriate balance in the amounts of each of these structural proteins produced during viral infection appears to be critical for normal phage T4 morphogenesis.Floor E. Interaction of morphogenetic genes of bacteriophage T4. J Mol Biol. 1970;47(3):293-306. doi:10.1016/0022-2836(70)90303-7 Phage T4 encoded proteins that determine virion structure include major structural components, minor structural components and non-structural proteins that catalyze specific steps in the morphogenesis sequence.Snustad DP. Dominance interactions in Escherichia coli cells mixedly infected with bacteriophage T4D wild-type and amber mutants and their possible implications as to type of gene-product function: catalytic vs. stoichiometric. Virology. 1968;35(4):550-563. doi:10.1016/0042-6822(68)90285-7 Phage T4 morphogenesis is divided into three independent pathways: the head, the tail and the long tail fibres as detailed by Yap and Rossman.Yap ML, Rossmann MG. Structure and function of bacteriophage T4. Future Microbiol. 2014;9(12):1319-1327. doi:10.2217/fmb.14.91
See also Viral nonstructural protein
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