Effect of LL37 and LL37 lipid nanocariers on bacteriophage phi6's structure

During the experiment proposed, the structural effect of LL37, a antimicrobial peptide from the human immune system, on the bacteriophage phi6 (a virus that infects only bacteria) will be investigated. The effect of LL37 on the different parts of the virus will be understood by collecting scattering patterns at varying concentrations of deuterated water. Moreover, the interaction of recently designed LL37 lipid nanocarriers with phi6 will be studied, helping to understand the enhanced antiviral activity of the nanocarriers compared to the LL37 alone. Fully deuterated lipids nanocarriers will be used to study the integration of lipids from the carriers to the viral envelope. Overall, the structure-function relationship will be established allowing to understand the underlying mechanism on the viral inactivation. This knowledge will help design a future generation of antiviral compounds.