Sequence analysis of the turkey coronavirus nucleocapsid protein gene and 3 ' untranslated region identifies the virus as a close relative of infectious bronchitis virus
Jj. Breslin et al., Sequence analysis of the turkey coronavirus nucleocapsid protein gene and 3 ' untranslated region identifies the virus as a close relative of infectious bronchitis virus, VIRUS RES, 65(2), 1999, pp. 187-193
The 3' end of the turkey coronavirus (TCV) genome (1740 bases) including th
e nucleocapsid (N) gene and 3' untranslated region (UTR were sequenced and
compared with published sequences of other avian and mammalian coronaviruse
s. The deduced sequence of the TCV N protein was determined to be 409 amino
acids with a molecular mass of approximately 45 kDa. The TCV N protein was
identical in size and had greater than 90% amino acid identity with publis
hed N protein sequences of infectious bronchitis virus (IBV); less than 21%
identity was observed with N proteins of bovine coronavirus and transmissi
ble gastroenteritis virus. The 3' UTR showed some variation among the three
TCV strains examined, with two TCV strains, Minnesota and Indiana, contain
ing 153 base segments which are not present in the NC95 strain. Nucleotide
sequence identity between the 3' UTRs of TCV and IBV was greater than 78%.
Similarities in both size and sequence of TCV and IBV N proteins and 3' UTR
s provide additional evidence that these avian coronaviruses are closely re
lated. (C) 1999 Elsevier Science B.V. All rights reserved.