Nucleotide sequence of the gene coding for p40, an occluded virion-specific polypeptide of Bombyx mori nuclear polyhedrosis virus

Bombyx mori nuclear polyhedrosis virus (BmNPV), a member of subgroup A baculoviruses, contains more than 33 structural polypeptides and has a double-stranded, circular DNA genome with a molecular size of 125-130 kbp. We cloned and subsequently sequenced the BmNPV gene coding for a polypeptide (p40) with an approximate molecular weight (MW) of 40,000 (40K). This polypeptide was detected in the occluded virions but not in the nonoccluded virions using the MAbs described previously.