Henipavirus genome organization and virion structure (not true to scale). (a) The henipavirus genome is a single stranded negative polarity RNA containing six viral genes. (b) The P gene encodes P, V, W, and C proteins possess IFN-antagonist activity. P, V, and W share a common sequence encoding their N-terminal domain (2404–3628 nucleotides (nt)), however at site AAAAAGGGC (3619–3628 nt) RNA editing can occur with a single G-nucleotide (1G) or double G (2G) insertion shifting the reading frame resulting in unique C-terminal domains for V and W proteins respectively; C-terminus of the P protein is longer (202 aa) when compared to W and V (43 and 49 aa, respectively). (c) Pleomorphic virion structure is controlled by M protein which lies under the virion envelope. Attachment protein G and fusion protein F are located on the envelope surface and protrude as spikes. The viral ribonucleoprotein (RNP) core consists of a single-stranded negative sense RNA, with N, L, and P proteins required for viral transcription.