Transition metals and oxidation reactions trigger stargate opening during the initial stages of the replicative cycle of the giant Tupanvirus.

Tupanviruses, members of the family , infect phagocytic cells. Particle uncoating begins inside the phagosome, with capsid opening via the stargate. The mechanism through which this opening takes place is unknown. Once phagocytized, metal ion flux control and ROS are induced to inactivate foreign particles, including viruses. Here, we studied the effect of iron ions, copper ions, and HO on Tupanvirus particles. Such treatments induced stargate opening , as observed by different microscopy techniques. Metal-treated viruses were found to be non-infectious, leading to the hypothesis that stargate opening likely resulted in the release of the viral seed, which is required for infection initiation. To the best of our knowledge, this is the first description of a giant virus capsid morphological change induced by transition metals and HO, which may be important to describe new virulence factors and capsid uncoating mechanisms.