Short repeats cause heterogeneity at genomic terminus of bovine herpesvirus 1

Analysis of the genomes of different bovine herpesvirus 1 strains revealed a UL terminal HindIII fragment differing in size (from 2.4 to 2.8 kilobases). This fragment polymorphism occurred in the DNA of a wild-type isolate, in highly passaged, apathogenic tissue culture derivatives, and in plaque-purified substrains. This heterogeneity was due to variations in the copy number of a 14-base-pair tandem repeat comprising the base sequence 5'-GCTCCTCCTCCCTC-3', which also exists, with some differences, in other short reiteration sequences of herpes simplex virus type 1, Epstein-Barr virus, and related human cellular DNA. Furthermore, the tandem repeat array was located in close proximity to the left end of the viral genome and may functionally be involved in viral replication.