Nucleotide sequence of the coat protein gene of Lettuce big-vein virus

A sequence of 1425 nt was established that included the complete coat protein (CP) gene of Lettuce big-vein virus (LBVV). The LBVV CP gene encodes a 397 amino acid protein with a predicted M r of 44486. Antisera raised against synthetic peptides corresponding to N-terminal or C-terminal parts of the LBVV CP reacted in Western blot analysis with a protein with an M r of about 48000. RNA extracted from purified particles of LBVV by using proteinase K, SDS and phenol migrated in gels as two single-stranded RNA species of approximately 7·3 kb (ss-1) and 6·6 kb (ss-2). After denaturation by heat and annealing at room temperature, the RNA migrated as four species, ss-1, ss-2 and two additional double-stranded RNAs (ds-1 and ds-2). The Northern blot hybridization analysis using riboprobes from a full-length clone of the LBVV CP gene indicated that ss-2 has a negative-sense nature and contains the LBVV CP gene. Moreover, ds-2 is a double-stranded form of ss-2. Database searches showed that the LBVV CP most resembled the nucleocapsid proteins of rhabdoviruses. These results indicate that it would be appropriate to classify LBVV as a negative-sense single-stranded RNA virus rather than as a double-stranded RNA virus.