Polymorphism of open reading frame 71 of equine herpesvirus-4 (EHV-4) and EHV-1

Open reading frame (ORF) 71 genes of both equine herpesvirus-1 (EHV-1) and EHV-4 encode a unique glycoprotein, which has been described to vary in molecular mass from 200 to 450 kDa. Using PCR and nucleotide sequence analysis, it was shown that the ORF 71 genes of EHV-1 and EHV-4 are polymorphic due to a variable number of reiterated sequences in two regions, designated regions A and B. Region A was threonine-rich and was located near the N terminus. Region B comprised a 38 amino acid repeat near the C terminus that expanded following cell culture adaptation. Western blot analysis of viruses showed that EHV-4 gp2 was modified by glycosylation and that variation in region A resulted in the marked differences in the molecular mass of EHV-4 gp2.