A mycobacteriophage Ms6 strong promoter region (P(lys)) was isolated by using transcriptional fusions with the lacZ reporter gene. Two tandem sigma(70)-like promoter sequences (P1 and P2) were found in this region. DNA sequencing of the promoter downstream region revealed a 214-bp leader sequence followed by five adjacent coding regions of 231 bp (ORF1), 1,152 bp (ORF2), 996 bp (ORF3), 231 bp (...

We established a reverse genetics system for Nyamanini virus (NYMV) and recovered green fluorescent protein (GFP)-expressing virus from full-length cDNA. Using this technology, we assessed the functions of two poorly characterized viral genes. NYMV lacking open reading frame 2 (ORF2) could not be rescued, whereas virus lacking ORF4 was replication competent. ORF4-deficient NYMV readily establis...

Hepatitis E virus (HEV) is a polyadenylated, positive-stranded RNA virus which is a major cause of enterically transmitted non-A, non-B hepatitis in many developing countries. The viral genome contains three different open reading frames (ORFs): ORF1, which is believed to encode nonstructural proteins, and ORF2 and ORF3, which are believed to encode structural proteins. The full-length putative...

Bacteroides conjugative transposons (CTns) are thought to transfer by first excising themselves from the chromosome to form a nonreplicating circle, which is then transferred by conjugation to a recipient. Earlier studies showed that transfer of most Bacteroides CTns is stimulated by tetracycline, but it was not known which step in transfer is regulated. We have cloned and sequenced both ends o...

Porcine circovirus type 2 (PCV2) is the primary causative agent of postweaning multisystemic wasting syndrome, which leads to serious economic losses in the pig industry worldwide. While the molecular basis of PCV2 replication and pathogenicity remains elusive, it is increasingly apparent that the microRNA (miRNA) pathway plays a key role in controlling virus-host interactions, in addition to a...

Yellow head virus (YHV) is an invertebrate nidovirus that is highly pathogenic for marine shrimp. Nucleotide sequence analysis indicated that the YHV ORF2 gene encodes a basic protein (pI = 9.9) of 146 amino acids with a predicted molecular weight of 16,325.5 Da. The deduced amino acid sequence indicated a predominance of basic (15.1%), acidic (9.6%) and hydrophilic polar (34.3%) residues and a...

Genotype 3 hepatitis E viruses (HEVs) are distributed across the world and are now considered to be an emerging public health concern in industrialized countries. At least 10 genotype 3 subtypes have been identified in humans and animals worldwide. It was recently reported that the sensitivities of HEV RNA assays differ greatly. We have assessed the influence of genotype 3 diversity on the perf...

The nucleotide sequence of the 1847-bp Bifidobacterium longum B2577 cryptic plasmid pMB1 was determined. The plasmid had a G+C content of 62.0%, and contained two open reading frames, orf1 and orf2, likely arranged in an operon. The proteins encoded by orf1 and orf2 show the highest degree of similarity with similarly arranged peptide sequences translated from Corynebacterium glutamicum pXZ1014...