Genome organization of Casphalia extranea densovirus, a new Iteravirus

The viral genome of Casphalia extranea densovirus (CeDNV) has been cloned and sequenced. It was 5002 nucleotides long and contained inverted terminal repeats of 230 nucleotides. Their distal 159 nucleotides formed imperfect palindromes in two orientations. Three large open reading frames (ORFs) were identified on the same strand, two in the left-hand half and one in the right-hand half. Each of the five structural proteins, expressed from the right-hand ORF in the baculovirus system, autoassembled into capsids. The two left-hand ORFs overlapped and code for nonstructural (NS) proteins. NS1 protein was shown to contain replicator protein and helicase/ATPase motifs. The PGY region in VP1 capsid protein is conserved among most parvoviruses and contained a phospholipase A2 motif, a novel viral enzyme. This domain was expressed and its enzyme activity was demonstrated. The approximate 75% sequence identity between the DNAs from CeDNV and BmDNV-1 and identical genome organization indicated that CeDNV should be classified in the Iteravirus genus. © 2002 Elsevier Science.