DNA–DNA surface separation

Value 7 Å
Organism Bacteriophage Lambda
Reference Liu T et al., Solid-to-fluid-like DNA transition in viruses facilitates infection. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 2014 Oct 14 111(41):14675-80. doi: 10.1073/pnas.1321637111. p.14675 right column top paragraphPubMed ID25271319
Primary Source [10] Lander GC, et al. (2013) DNA bending-induced phase transition of encapsidated genome in phage ?. Nucleic Acids Res 41(8):4518–4524PubMed ID23449219
Comments p.14675 left column bottom paragraph:"Although DNA is always condensed inside the cell (ref 15), it is not condensed to the same extent as inside a viral capsid. Other than in sperm nuclei, in vivo packaging densities range from ~5–10% by volume (BNID 111739). DNA confined in viral capsids, on the other hand, is at the extreme end of the packaging scale, where it is confined to 55% by volume, forming a hexagonally ordered structure (BNID 111739). At only a few angstroms of DNA–DNA surface separation [e.g., 7 Å surface separation in the wild-type (WT) DNA length of 48,500 bp [BNID 105770] packaged in phage ?] (primary source), hexagonally ordered DNA has been shown to have very restricted mobility (refs 16, 18)."
Entered by Uri M
ID 111740