Structural highlights
Function
WAC_BPT4 Chaperone responsible for attachment of long tail fibers to virus particle. Forms the fibrous structure on the neck of the virion called whiskers. During phage assembly, 6 fibritin molecules attach to each virion neck through their N-terminal domains, to form a collar with six fibers ('whiskers').FUS_BRSVC During virus entry, induces fusion of viral and cellular membranes leading to delivery of the nucleocapsid into the cytoplasm. The fusogenic activity is inactive untill entry into host cell endosome, where a furin-like protease cleaves off a small peptide between F1 and F2. Interacts directly with heparan sulfate and may participate in virus attachment. Later in infection, proteins F expressed at the plasma membrane of infected cells can mediate fusion with adjacent cells to form syncytia, a cytopathic effect that could lead to tissue necrosis. The fusion protein is also able to trigger p53-dependent apoptosis.[UniProtKB:P03420]
