COMPARATIVE-STUDY OF THE GENETIC-VARIABILITY IN THYMIDINE KINASE AND GLYCOPROTEIN-B GENES OF HERPES-SIMPLEX VIRUSES BY THE RNASE-A MISMATCHCLEAVAGE METHOD

The variability of herpes simplex viruses has been measured using the RNAse A mismatch cleavage method in two genes: thymidine kinase and gl ycoprotein B of both HSV-1 and HSV-2. This technique permitted us to s tudy the variability of the virus with a greater level of resolution t han restriction endonuclease analysis. The phylogenetic trees obtained for the different genes allowed us to identify consistent clusters of viruses circulating in the same geographical area. Our results showed that thymidine kinase is more heterogeneous than glycoprotein B for b oth subtypes of HSV, and confirmed that HSV-1 is more heterogeneous th an HSV-2 for both genes. This is the first time that this kind of anal ysis has been applied to DNA viruses.