Previous Article | Next Article ![]()
J. Virol., 04 1996, 2269-2276, Vol 70, No. 4
TD Nelle and JW Wills
All retroviruses have a layer of matrix protein (MA) situated directly
beneath the lipid of their envelope. This protein is initially expressed as
the amino-terminal sequence of the Gag polyprotein, where it plays an
important role in binding Gag to the plasma membrane during the early steps
of the budding process. Others have suggested that MA may provide
additional functions during virion assembly, including the selective
incorporation of viral glycoproteins and the RNA genome into the emerging
virion. To further study the role of the Rous sarcoma virus MA sequence in
the viral replication cycle, we have pursued an extensive deletion
analysis. Surprisingly, the entire second half of MA (residues 87 to 155)
and part of the neighboring p2 sequence were found to be dispensable not
only for budding but also for infectivity in avian cells. Thus, all of the
functions associated with the Rous sarcoma virus MA sequence must be
contained within its first half.
Copyright © 1996, American Society for Microbiology
A large region within the Rous sarcoma virus matrix protein is dispensable for budding and infectivity
Department of Microbiology and Immunology, Pennsylvania State University College of Medicine, Hershey, Pennsylvania 17033, USA.
This article has been cited by other articles:
Copyright © 2009 by the American Society for Microbiology. For an alternate route to Journals.ASM.org, visit: http://intl-journals.asm.org | More Info»