Molecular cloning and nucleotide sequences of the Perina nuda nucleopolyhedrovirus (PenuNPV) p10 gene

The Perina nuda nucleopolyhedrovirus (PenuNPV) p10 gene was located in a Pst I 4.5 kilo-base pair (kb) fragment of the viral genome. A portion of 696 nucleotides (nt) containing this gene was sequenced. An open reading frame (ORF) of 276 nt encoded the p10 protein of 92 amino acid residues. The conserved TAAG motif, which is associated with transcription of most baculovirus late genes, was identified 53 nt upstream of the translational start codon of the PenuNPV p10 gene. Northern blot analysis using a DIG-labeled PenuNPV p10 gene probe detected 2 major transcripts, 0.62 kb and 3.08 kb mRNA in PenuNPV-infected cells at 96 to 120 h postinfection. The PenuNPV p10 gene was expressed as a 0.62 kb transcript. The PenuNPV p10 protein showed 38%, 44%, 44%, 22%, and 96% amino acid identity, respectively, with the p10 proteins of Autographa californica MNPV (AcMNPV), Bombyx mon NPV (BmNPV), Choristoneura fumiferana MNPV (CfMNPV), Spodoptera exigua MNPV (SeMNPV), and Orgyia pseudotsugata MNPV (OpMNPV). This implies that PenuNPV p10 protein is most closely related to OpMNPV p10 protein.