The C-terminal domains of adenovirus serotype 5 protein IX assemble into an antiparallel structure on the facets of the capsid.

Adenovirus serotype 5 protein IX (pIX) has two domains connected by a flexible linker. Three N-terminal domains form triskelions on the capsid facets that cement hexons together, and the C-terminal domains of four monomers form complexes toward the facet periphery. Here we present a cryoelectron microscopy structure of recombinant adenovirus with a peptide tag added to the C terminus of pIX. The structure, made up by several C termini of pIX, is longer at both ends than the wild-type protein, and Fabs directed against the tag bind to both ends of the oligomer, demonstrating that the pIX C termini associate in an antiparallel manner.