A coarse-grained model of the expansionof the human rhinovirus 2 capsid revealsinsights in genome release

Human rhinoviruses are causative agents of the common cold. In order torelease their RNA genome into the host during a viral infection, these smallviruses must undergo conformational changes in their capsids, whosedetailed mechanism is strictly related to the process of RNA extrusion,which has been only partially elucidated. We study here a mathematicalmodel for the structural transition between the native particle of human rhi-novirus type 2 and its expanded form, viewing the process as an energycascade, i.e. a sequence of metastable states with decreasing energy connectedby minimum energy paths. We explore several transition pathways anddiscuss their implications for the RNA exit process