Capsid-based virus particles are widely engineered as viral nanoparticles and virus-like nanoparticles. The highly organized and uniform capsid structures make them ideal candidates for both in vitro and in vivo applications such as therapeutic delivery vehicles or enzymatic nanoreactors. Viruses have adapted to naturally infect a wide variety of organisms making their production achievable in various expression systems from bacterial to plants. Viral capsids can be modified externally and internally to suit the final application. The wide range of possible applications, ease of production in the system of choice, and customizable modification of viral capsids makes them an attractive choice in the field of nanotechnology. In this chapter we aim to provide a generic protocol for the purification and characterization of virus-derived nanoparticles and methodology for chemically labelling them to monitor their uptake in mammalian cells.
Keywords: Density gradient; Intracellular uptake; Particle size distribution; Viral nanoparticle; Virus-like nanoparticle.