viral extrusion
viral extrusion
The process whereby a filamentous phage particle is released from a bacterial host cell via a concerted mechanism of assembly and secretion. Neosynthesized virions are coordinately exported as they are assembled at the cell surface in a secretory process that leaves the host cell fully viable. Non-capsid proteins form structures that facilitate translocation through the inner membrane and outer membranes. A viral single-stranded DNA binding protein coats progeny viral DNA molecules to generate the intracellular precursor for assembly of phage particles as they are extruded through the membranes of the bacterial host. The structural proteins of the virus are anchored in the inner membrane before their incorporation into the phage particle. As assembly proceeds, the phage genome traverses the inner and outer membranes until the entire DNA molecule has been coated and extruded.