José Castón

Our studies address to elucidate structure-function relationships of viral macromolecular complexes, also known as viral nanomachines, which control many fundamental processes in virus life cycle. We use a multidisciplinary approach that has led to structural analysis by 3D cryo-electron microscopy (cryo-EM) combined with atomic structures (hybrid approach). Our studies intend to establish the molecular interactions of the components in these complex assemblies, as well as the molecular basis of their functional implications. We have incorporated state-of-the-art approaches to obtain near-atomic resolution structure directly from two-dimensional micrographs. We are also using nanoscopic studies of these biomachines by single molecule manipulation techniques such as atomic force microscopy (AFM) to correlate structural features of capsomer interactions with their mechanical properties. Finally, virus-like particles can be used as nanocontainers to encapsulate different types of materials.