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This Article Full Text Full Text (PDF) All Versions of this Article: vir.0.009035-0v1 90/6/1499    most recent Alert me when this article is cited Alert me if a correction is posted Citation Map Services Email this article to a friend Similar articles in this journal Similar articles in PubMed Alert me to new issues of the journal Download to citation manager Citing Articles Citing Articles via CrossRef Google Scholar Articles by Yu, I.-L. Articles by Lung, O. PubMed PubMed Citation Articles by Yu, I.-L. Articles by Lung, O. Agricola Articles by Yu, I.-L. Articles by Lung, O.

Autographa californica multiple nucleopolyhedrovirus ORF 23 null mutant produces occlusion-derived virions with fewer nucleocapsids

Ian-Ling Yu^1,

Oliver Lung^1,

¹ Department of Biological Sciences, University of Lethbridge, Lethbridge, AB T1K 3M4, Canada
² Faculty of Dentistry, Kaohsiung Medical University, Kaohsiung, Taiwan, ROC

Correspondence
Oliver Lung
oliver.lung{at}inspection.gc.ca

Two envelope fusion protein gene homologues have been identified in the baculovirus Autographa californica multiple nucleopolyhedrovirus (AcMNPV). AcMNPV GP64 protein is fusogenic and essential for propagation and pathogenicity. The F homologue (Ac23) is not essential, is fusion-incompetent in standard assays, but contributes to faster host death. Here, we show that occlusion bodies (OBs) from Ac23null mutants and control viruses do not differ significantly in size and the number of occlusion-derived virions (ODVs) contained; however, Ac23null OBs had a much higher percentage of ODVs with a single nucleocapsid (44.6 %) than the near-isogenic control (11.3 %). Infection of Sf9 cells with Ac23–green fluorescent protein (gfp)-expressing recombinant viruses showed Ac23–gfp fluorescence overlapping perinuclear DAPI staining at later times, a pattern not observed with GP64. These results suggest that F proteins have evolved functions beyond envelope fusion and play a different role from that of GP64 in viruses that contain both proteins.

Present address: Canadian Centre for Behavioural Neuroscience, University of Lethbridge, AB T1K 3M4, Canada.

Present address: Lethbridge Laboratory, Canadian Food Inspection Agency, PO Box 640, Lethbridge, AB T1J 3Z4, Canada.