Molecular analysis of a recombinant M-MuLV/RaLV retrovirus

AbstractA replication-competent retrovirus was isolated from Rat1 cells after stable transfection of a defective Moloney murine leukemia virus (M-MuLV) provirus bearing mutations in two conserved cysteines of the TM protein. Immunoprecipitation of the viral proteins indicated the infectious virus is not related to M-MuLV. Electron microscopy of budding virions revealed a mammalian type C virus. The host range of the virus is limited to rat cells. N-terminal sequence analysis of the capsid-associated protein identified the virus to be related to rat leukemia virus (RaLV). Analysis of the cloned sequences indicated a recombinant provirus with a genetic organization in which the leader region and open reading frames of the endogenous RaLV are flanked by identical M-MuLV LTRs at both ends. These results highlight the effects of exogenous viral infection on endogenous viruses