Mapping RNase T1-resistant oligonucleotides of avian tumor virus RNAs: sarcoma-specific oligonucleotides are near the poly(A) end and oligonucleotides common to sarcoma and transformation-defective viruses are at the poly(A) end.

The large RNase T1-resistant oligonucleotides of the nondefective (nd) Rous sarcoma virus (RSV): Prague RSV of subgroup B (PR-B), PR-C and B77 of subgroup C; of their transformation-defective (td0 deletion mutants: td PR-B, td PR-C, and td B77; and of replication-defective (rd) RSV(-) were completely or partially mapped on the 30 to 40S viral RNAs. The location of a given oligonucleotide relative to the poly(A) terminus of the viral RNAs was directly deduced from the smallest size of the poly(A)-tagged RNA fragment from which it could be isolated. Identification of distinct oligonucleotides was based on their location in the electrophoretic/chromatographic fingerprint pattern and on analysis of their RNase A-resistant fragments. The following results were obtained. (i) The number of large oligonucleotides per poly(A)-tagged ffagment increased with increasing size of the fragment. This implies that the genetic map is linear and that a given RNase T1-resistant oligonucleotides has, relative to the poly(A) end, the same location on all 30 to 40S RNA subunits of a given 60 to 70S viral RNA complex, (ii) Three sarcoma-specific oligonucleotides were identified in the RNAs of Pr-B, PR-C and B77 by comparison with the RNAs of the corresponding td viruses...