Comparative analysis of <i>M3</i> RNA expression in lungs of infected wood mice.

<p>Quantification by qRT-PCR of RNA expressed from the MHV-68 genome within lungs; <i>ORF50</i> RNA levels were assessed as a general reference for lytic-cycle gene expression. The copy numbers of individual viral-gene RNAs (as cDNAs) were normalized to those for cellular <i>RPL8</i>. Error bars represent the standard error of the mean from three wood mice per time point. (A) analysis of expression from the <i>M1-M4</i> locus of infected wood mice lungs. (B) analysis of M3 expression from the lungs of BALB/c and wood mice. Note that, although <i>M3</i> expression is similar for both species at 7 days p.i., after 14 days p.i., <i>M3</i> expression in BALB/c mouse lungs is drastically reduced compared to wood mice.