Fusion of Large Polypeptides to Human Adenovirus Type 5 Capsid Protein IX Can Compromise Virion Stability and DNA Packaging Capacity

Human adenovirus capsid protein IX (pIX) is involved in stabilizing the virion but has also been developed as a platform for presentation of various polypeptides on the surface of the virion. Whether such modifications affect the ability of pIX to stabilize the virion is unknown. We show that addition of large polypeptides to pIX can reduce both the DNA packaging capacity and the heat stability of the virion, which provides important guidance...