The complete genome of the Maruca vitrata nucleopolyhedrovirus (MaviNPV) isolated from the legume pod borer, Maruca vitrata (Lepidoptera: Pyralidae), was sequenced. It was found to be 111 953 bp in length, with an overall 39 % G+C content, and contained 126 open reading frames (ORFs) encoding predicted proteins of over 50 aa. The gene content and gene order of MaviNPV have the highest similarit...

Baculoviruses are insect-specific pathogens with a generally narrow host ranges. Successful primary infection is initiated by the proper interaction of at least 8 conserved per os infectivity factors (PIFs) with the host's midgut cells, a process that remains largely a mystery. In this study, we investigated the host specificities of the four core components of the PIF complex, P74, PIF1, PIF2 ...

Four viruses were tested for vertical transmission in Trichoplusia ni: T. ni nucleopolyhedrovirus (TnSNPV), T. ni cypovirus (TnCPV), Autographa californica nucleopolyhedrovirus (AcMNPV), and AcMNPV engineered to express a scorpion toxin (AcMNPV.AaIT). Fifth instars were exposed to each virus, the survivors were reared and mated, and second-generation (F(1)) insects were examined for infection. ...

p13 gene was first described in Leucania separata multinuclear polyhedrosis virus (Ls-p13) several years ago, but the function of P13 protein has not been experimentally investigated to date. In this article, we indicated that the expression of p13 from Heliothis armigera single nucleocapsid nucleopolyhedrovirus (Ha-p13) was regulated by both early and late promoter. Luciferase assay demonstrat...

Autographa californica nucleopolyhedrovirus (AcMNPV) does not replicate in Bombyx mori cells (Bm5, BmN). We have shown previously that when a short DNA sequence within AcMNPV ORF95, which encodes the viral helicase P143, is replaced with the colinear region of B. mori nucleopolyhedrovirus (BmNPV), AcMNPV gains the ability to replicate in Bm5 cells. To determine the mutational events in the p143...

The viral three-prime repair exonuclease (v-trex) gene of the Anticarsia gemmatalis multicapsid nucleopolyhedrovirus (AgMNPV) is the first baculovirus gene to be described with significant homology to a 3' exonuclease. v-trex is an early gene that is expressed by AgMNPV from 3 h post-infection. In the present study, the AgMNPV v-trex ORF was cloned into the baculovirus Autographa californica mu...

The baculovirus Autographa californica multicapsid nucleopolyhedrovirus (AcMNPV) has been investigated as a possible tool for gene therapy, but its inhibition by complement proteins in human serum limits its applicability. Here, we used the baculovirus Bombyx mori nucleopolyhedrovirus (BmNPV) to construct a gene delivery vector in which a reporter gene is driven by a cytomegalovirus IE promoter...

The black cutworm, Agrotis ipsilon (Hufnagel) (Lepidoptera: Noctuidae), is a serious localized pest of vegetable and field crops. We have characterized a newly discovered baculovirus, the Agrotis ipsilon multicapsid nucleopolyhedrovirus (AgipMNPV), that was isolated from A. ipsilon in Illinois. Restriction enzyme fragment profiles of AgipMNPV DNA were distinct from those of previously described...