volume 12 Number 16 1984 Nucleic Acids Research Nucleotide sequence and genome organization of foot-and-mouth disease virus S.Forss, K.Strebel, E.Beck and H.Schaller

A continuous 7802 nucleotide sequence spanning the 94 * of foot and mouth disease virus RNA between the 5-proximal poly(C) tract and the 3'-terminat poty(A) was obtained from cloned cpNA, and the total size of the RNA genome was corrected to 8450 nucteotides. A long open reading frame was identified within this sequence starting about 1300 bases from the 5 end of the RNA genome and extending to a termination codon 92 bases from its polyade-nylated 3 end. The protein sequence of 2332 ammo acids deduced from this coding sequence was correlated with the 260 K FMDV polyprotein. Its pro-cessing sites and twelve mature viral proteins were interred from protein data, available for some proteins, a predicted cleavage specificity of an FMDV encoded protease for Gtu / GlyCThr, Ser) linkages, and homologies to related proteins from poliovirus. In addition, a short unlinked reading frame of 92 codons has been identified by sequence homology to the polyprotein initiation signal and by in vitro translation studies