Electrophoretic separation of dsRNA genome segments from Fiji disease and maize rough dwarf viruses

By employing two different buffer solutions for polyacrylamide gel electrophoresis, all genome segments of Fiji disease and maize rough dwarf virus were separated. Fiji disease virus contains ten genome segments with approximate genome molecular weights of 19.26 x 10(6) and 19.85 x 10(6), depending on the buffer employed for electrophoresis. Maize rough dwarf virus possesses ten dsRNA segments and according to the buffer employed for electrophoresis the approximate molecular weights of the genome were 18.91 x 10(6) and 19.61 x 10(6). In the samples of maize rough dwarf virus analysed, the evidence indicates that two types of virions were present which were distinguished by a slight difference in molecular weight for segment 10. The electrophoretic patterns for all dsRNA components of Fiji disease and maize rough dwarf viruses were very similar suggesting a close relationship between them.