Before revision: Many studies have shown that the icosahedral symmetry adopted by most spherical viruses is the result of free energy minimization of a generic interaction between virus proteins. Remarkably, we find that icosahedral and other highly symmetric structures observed both in vitro and equilibrium studies of viral shells can readily grow from identical subunits under non equilibrium conditions.
After revision: Many studies have shown that the icosahedral symmetry adopted by most spherical viruses is the result of free energy minimization of a generic interaction between their constituent subunits. We examine the physical basis for the formation of symmetric shells, and using a minimal model we demonstrate that these structures can readily grow from identical subunits under non equilibrium conditions.