Nanocommunication: How virus particles convince cells to let them inside

Eukaryotic viruses replicating in the nucleus must pass two barriers, the plasma membrane and the nuclear envelope, to deliver their genome to a compartment allowing replication, and to initiate an infection.
Viral nanomachines have evolved to efficiently interface with and overcome these barriers. To arrive at a thorough understanding of this molecular interfacing we will address the following questions: i) What is the mechanochemistry of contact formation between an enveloped viral particle and a cell membrane? How does interfacing between a viral and a host membrane trigger capsid release in the cytosol? ii) What are the physical, structural and chemical principles underlying functional coupling between viral capsids and nuclear pore complexes allowing access to the nucleus? How is the release of the viral genome triggered? Dissecting and describing these molecular interfacing mechanisms will provide researchers with tools to design nano-objects that can enter and influence cells.