The effects of chondroitin sulfate on the tobacco mosaic virus configuration

Tobacco mosaic virus (TMV) particles show the isotropic-nematic (I-N) trans ition as a function of Chondroitin sulfate (Chs) concentration, which bring s a high inhibitory activity against TMV infection. In our previous paper, we demonstrated that the depletion force induced by TMV particles and Chs c hains played an important; role in the I-N transition, using Monte Carlo si mulations for hard spherocylinders and semirigid polymer chains system. In this study, we modify the rigidity of polymer chain in order to examine the role of the depletion force in the I-N transition. The Chs chain concentra tion giving the I-N transition is increased with decreasing the rigidity of the chain, and this indicates that the entropic force governs the phase be havior of TMV+polymer system.