Typically the protein coat, or capsid, of an individual virus particle, or virion, is composed of multiple copies of one or several types of protein subunits, or capsomeres.
Some viruses contain enzymes, and some have an outer membranous envelope.
Certain viruses, such as bacteriophages, have complex protein tails. The nucleic acid specifies information for the synthesis of from a few to 50 different proteins, depending on the type of virus. Listing from Electric Library , a pay service. Copyright 2001 Infonautics Corporation . All rights reserved.