Most thoroughly investigated and best known virus. A ribonucleoprotein contg 95% protein and 5% ribonucleic acid. Molecular weight is 39.0 × 106. TMV is a rod-shaped particle, ≈3000 long, consisting of 2130 polypeptide chains arranged in some regular order to form a tubular molecule containing a core of RNA. The polypeptide chains consist of 158 amino acid residues each; their mol wt is 17,533. The RNA is responsible for the infectivity of the virus. The protein functions to protect the RNA and determine the macroscopic properties of the virus such as morphology and serological specificity. Isoln from diseased tobacco plants: Stanley, Science 81, 644 (1935). Prepn and characterization of essentially uniform TMV particles: Boedtker, Simmons, J. Am. Chem. Soc. 80, 2550 (1958); Knight, Biochem. Prep. 9, 132 (1962). Sequential arrangement of the 158 amino acid residues of the protein subunit: Tsugita et al., Proc. Natl. Acad. Sci. USA 46, 1463 (1960). Synthesis of TMV-RNA by cell free extracts from infected tobacco leaves: Kim, Wildman, Biochem. Biophys. Res. Commun. 8, 394 (1962); Cochran, Chem. Eng. News 40, 64 (Sept. 17, 1962). Reviews: Anderer, Adv. Protein Chem. 18, 1 (1963); Caspar, ibid. 37; Klug, Caspar, Adv. Virus Res. 7, 233-277 (1960); Lauffer, Stevens, ibid. 13, 1 (1968); Reddi, ibid. 17, 51 (1972); L. Hirth, K. E. Richards, ibid. 26, 145-199 (1981).