Identification and expression of the UL1 gene product of equine herpesvirus 1

Sequences encoding the UL1 gene of equine herpesvirus type 1 (EHV-1) are conserved in the genome of EHV-1 defective interfering particles (DIPs) that mediate oncogenic transformation and persistent infection. The UL1 protein was identified by in vitro transcription/translation and hybrid-arrest translation analyses which employed a UL1/pGEM-3Z construct designated pGEML1. SDS-PAGE analyses of in vitro translation products synthesized from UL1-specific RNA revealed that the UL1 ORF encodes a 30 kDa protein which corresponds in size to the 258 amino acid protein predicted by DNA sequence analyses. This result was confirmed by arresting translation of the in vitro transcribed UL1 RNA with an oligodeoxynucleotide complementary to UL1 coding sequences. The UL1 protein is a homolog of the predicted protein encoded by the ORF2 gene of varicella-zoster virus, but UL1 has no homolog in herpes simplex virus type 1. The UL1 protein contains a region conforming to a 'PEST' (Proline, Glutamic acid, Serine, and Threonine) sequence, which is commonly found in proteins with half-lives of less than two hours.