CLONING AND SEQUENCE-ANALYSIS OF THE COAT PROTEIN GENES OF AN AUSTRALIAN STRAIN OF PEANUT MOTTLE AND AN INDONESIAN BLOTCH STRAIN OF PEANUT STRIPE POTYVIRUSES

We have analysed the coat protein gene sequences of two potyviruses in fecting peanut. The 3' terminal 1247 nucleotides (nt) of an Australian strain of peanut mottle virus (PeMoV-AU) and the 3' terminal 1388 nt of an Indonesian 'blotch' strain of peanut stripe virus (PStV-Ib) were cloned and sequenced. Those regions included the 861 and 864 nt encod ing the respective putative coat proteins as well as the 285 and 253 n t, respectively of 3' non-coding sequences. Comparison of the nucleoti de sequences of PeMoV-AU and PStV-Ib revealed a sequence similarity of 64.4% for the coat protein gene and 34.6% for the 3' non-coding regio n. The deduced amino acid sequences of PeMoV-AU and PStV-Ib coat prote ins are 66.7% identical. These results provide further evidence that P eMoV and PStV are distinct viruses. Comparisons of the 3' terminal seq uences of PeMoV-AU and PStV-Ib with those of the genomic RNA of other strains of PeMoV and PStV and with other potyviruses are discussed.