Repetitive sequence in the Epstein-Barr virus EBNA-3C gene is related to a family of minisatellite arrays in the human genome

A unique feature of the Epstein-Barr virus (EBV) genome is its high content of repetitive sequences. We identified a new human minisatellite element, tentatively designated MEB-1, that is similar to the 10 x ''15bp'' tandem repeat within the EBV nuclear antigen-3C (EBNA-3C) coding region. Southern blot analysis showed that the human genome has multiple copies of MEB-1-related repeats and that some of them are highly polymorphic. Both MEB-1 and the 10 x ''15bp'' repeat contain an octamer consensus GC[A/T]GG[A/T]GG, resembling the prokaryotic recombination signal chi. This octamer was also found in another EBV repeat sequence IR3 and the cellular GGA family of repeats that are related to IR3. Since the octamer motif is generally considered to have a role in the generation of a group of minisatellite DNA, these findings suggest that the four viral and cellular repeats have been generated through similar mechanisms promoted by the motif.