CHED 1402 |
| Cowpea chlorotic mottle viruse (CCMV) is a simple plant virion of the Bromoviridae family with a spherical structure. At certain pH concentrations CCMV capsids can swell and increase in dimension by 10%. This swelling and its ability to reassemble from components allows CCMV to encapsulate foreign materials. Our research group is attempting to find the proper solution conditions which would allow a fluorescent polyelectrolyte, such as poly(2-methoxy-5-propyloxy sulfonate phenylene vinylene) (MPS-PPV), to replace the RNA and be encapsulated by CCMV. Recently, we have tested various concentrations of DMSO with purified virus protein and with a non-fluorescent polyelectrolyte. Knowing the right amount of DMSO is important because too much DMSO will denature the proteins while too little DMSO will cause MPS-PPV to aggregate in solution, preventing the formation of proper virus particles. From our experiments we found that capsids will still form when the concentration of DMSO is around 10%. |
|
Undergraduate Research Poster Session: Physical Chemistry
2:00 PM-4:00 PM, Monday, March 26, 2007 Hyatt Regency Chicago -- Riverside Center, Poster
Division of Chemical Education |