ANALYSIS OF THE NUCLEOTIDE-SEQUENCE OF A 43-KBP SEGMENT OF THE GENOMEOF VARIOLA VIRUS INDIA-1967 STRAIN

Sequencing and computer analysis of the nucleotide sequence of the var iola virus strain India-1967 (VAR) genome segment (43069 bp) from the region of HindIII C, E, R, Q, K, H DNA fragments has been carried out. Forty-three potential open reading frames (ORFs) have been identified , and the polypeptides encoded by them have been compared with the ana logous proteins of vaccinia virus strain Copenhagen (COP). ORF E7R of VAR is much shorter than the COP analog. The other polypeptides coded by the potential ORFs of VAR are highly conserved in comparison with C OP. Possible functions of the predicted viral polypeptides are discuss ed.