Viruses as nanoparticles: Structure versus collective dynamics

Authors

S. Sirotkin, Universite de Lyon
A. Mermet, Universite de Lyon
M. Bergoin, Universite Montpellier
V. Ward, University of Otago
James L. Van Etten, University of Nebraska-LincolnFollow

Document Type

Article

Date of this Version

2014

Citation

PHYSICAL REVIEW E 90, 022718 (2014). DOI: 10.1103/PhysRevE.90.022718

Comments

©2014 American Physical Society. Used by permission.

Abstract

In order to test the application of the “nanoparticle” concept to viruses in terms of low-frequency dynamics, large viruses (140–190 nm) were compared to similar-sized polymer colloids using ultra-small-angle x-ray scattering and very-low-frequency Raman or Brillouin scattering. While both viruses and polymer colloids show comparable highly defined morphologies, with comparable abilities of forming self-assembled structures, their respective abilities to confine detectable acoustic vibrations, as expected for such monodisperse systems, differed. Possible reasons for these different behaviors are discussed.