SEQUENCES OF THE BOVINE HERPESVIRUS-1 HOMOLOG OF HERPES-SIMPLEX VIRUS TYPE-1 ALPHA-TRANS-INDUCING FACTOR (UL48)

A virion protein of herpes simplex virus type-1, called Vmw65, alphaTIF or VP16, interacts with cellular transcription factors to transactivate immediate early viral genes. We have cloned and determined the nucleotide sequence of the gene encoding the homologous protein in bovine herpesvirus 1 (BHV-1). The amino acid sequence of the BHV-1 protein is similar to that of alphaTIF, except in the C-terminal one-third of the protein. Since the ability of alphaTIF to activate transcription is dependent on this region, our results suggest that the BHV-1 homologue either does not act as a transactivator or activates genes by a different mechanism.