Molecular cloning and sequence analysis of the Anticarsia gemmatalis multicapsid nuclear polyhedrosis virus GP64 glycoprotein.

The gp64 locus of Anticarsia gemmatalis multicapsid nucleopolyhedrovirus isolate Santa Fe (AgMNPV-SF) was characterised molecularly in our laboratory. To this end, we have located and cloned a AgMNPV-SF genomic DNA fragment containing the gp64 gene and sequenced the complete gp64 locus. Nucleotide sequence analysis indicated that the AgMNPV gp64 gene consists of a 1500 nucleotide open reading frame (ORF), encoding a protein of 499 amino acids. Of the seven gp64 homologues identified to date, the AgMNPV gp64 ORF shared most sequence similarity with the gp64 gene of Orgyia pseudotsugata MNPV. The GP64 from AgMNPV is the smallest baculoviral envelope glycoprotein found to date, differing in 10 or more residues from the other group I nucleopolyhedroviruses. The biological activity of AgMNPV GP64 protein was assessed by cell fusion assays in UFL-AG-286 cells using the obtained recombinant plasmids. In the upstream and downstream regions, relative to the gp64 ORF, we found different conserved transcriptional and post-transcriptional regulatory elements, respectively.