title: Virion polypeptide heterogeneity among virulent and avirulent strains of eastern equine encephalitis (EEE) virus.
abstract: Comparative analysis of structural virion polypeptides of 24 selected EEE virus strains, representing North and South American types, was performed by one-dimensional discontinuous sodium dodecyl sulfate (SDS)-polyacrylamide-gel electrophoresis (PAGE). The structural proteins of different EEE virus isolates, resolved by this method, exhibited mol.wts. values in the range of 57-60 X 10(3) for (E-1), 51-54 X 10(3) for (E-2) and 35-38 X 10(3) daltons for the core (NP) nucleocapsid. The exception was the South American human lethal virus, TRVL-89287 strain, which was shown to possess only a single envelope glycoprotein. The high molecular weight envelope (E-1) glycoprotein species was absent or co-migrated adjacent to the smaller envelope (E-2) glycoprotein. Results indicated similarities in the core (NP) proteins, however greater variability in the envelope (E-/ and/or E-2) glycoproteins. Based on these variations seven distinct profiles could be observed among the EEE virus strain studied. The classification based on the patterns of structural polypeptides obtained by SDS-PAGE of these strains does not correlate well with any other previously reported in vitro characteristics (antigenic subtypes, HTP elution profiles) nor with the in vivo virulence markers.
mesh_terms: D000524:Alphavirus / Q000032:analysis*; D004591:Electrophoresis, Polyacrylamide Gel; D004663:Encephalitis Virus, Eastern Equine / Q000032:analysis*; D006023:Glycoproteins / Q000032:analysis*; D008565:Membrane Proteins / Q000032:analysis; D008970:Molecular Weight; D013045:Species Specificity; D014764:Viral Proteins / Q000032:analysis*; D014771:Virion / Q000032:analysis
chemical_list: D006023:Glycoproteins; D008565:Membrane Proteins; D014764:Viral Proteins