MOLECULAR-CLONING, SEQUENCING AND EXPRESSION IN ESCHERICHIA-COLI OF THE ODONTOGLOSSUM RINGSPOT VIRUS COAT PROTEIN GENE

The sequence of the 3'-terminal 1865 nucleotides of the genome of the tobamovirus odontoglossum ringspot virus (ORSV) was determined. This sequence contained two open reading frames (ORFs), 912 and 477 nucleotides long. The 912 nucleotide ORF has been identified as the cell-to-cell transport protein gene. The 477 nucleotide ORF was expressed in Escherichia coli, and the product was detected by antibodies specific for the coat protein of ORSV. The amino acid sequence of protein encoded by this ORF shares 84 % similarity with the tobacco mosaic virus (TMV) (vulgare) coat protein. The 3'-terminal untranslated region of ORSV comprises 414 nucleotides, 210 nucleotides more than that of TMV (vulgare) RNA.