SEQUENCES FROM THE BEGINNING OF THE FIBER MESSENGER-RNA OF ADENOVIRUS-2

Small restriction fragments, from around co-ordinate 86.6 on the adenovirus-2 genome, have been used as primers for direct DNA sequence analysis by Sanger's (Sanger et al., 1977) chain termination method with Ad2† † Abbreviation used: Ad2, adenovirus-2. DNA as template. The genomic sequences obtained have been compared with sequences deduced using fiber messenger RNA from Ad2 or Ad2+ ND5-infected cells as template. With one primer, Hha 54, the sequences complementary to mRNA match those of the genome for 10 nucleotides but then differ from those found on the genome because this primer hybridizes near the point at which the leader sequence becomes joined to the main body of fiber mRNA. Using Ad2+ ND5 fiber mRNA as template, the sequence beyond the point of divergence matches the known sequence of the third leader component of one of the late Ad2 mRNAs, that encoding the hexon polypeptide. With Ad2 fiber mRNA, a heterogeneous sequence continuation is found, in accordance with earlier findings that two major species of fiber mRNA are present, which differ in the nature of the leader component joined to the main body of fiber mRNA (Chow & Broker, 1978). Nevertheless, the data suggest that both leader components appear to become joined to the same nucleotide at the start of the main body of fiber mRNA. The AUG codon, which probably encodes the N-terminus of the fiber polypeptide, occurs just two nucleotides beyond the point at which these leader segments become spliced to the main body of fiber mRNA. © 1979.