Possible finger structure in gene A protein of Microviridae.

Microvirid phages alpha 3 and phi K encode for A protein which functions in initiation of the viral DNA synthesis. By nucleotide sequencing analysis, we have found that each gene A protein has 'finger motif structure' which conserves two cysteine and histidine residues similar to the consensus sequence deduced from more than thirty finger motifs reported from many eukaryotic regulatory proteins. In closely related phages, phi X174 and G4, we have detected the same structures in their gene A proteins also.