The development of recombinant DNA technology has made a marked impact on molecular virology. The cleavage of viral DNA genomes with restriction enzymes and the cloning of such DNA fragments in bacterial p1asmids has led to the amplification of selected viral DNA fragments for sequencing and gene expression. RNA virus genomes which can be transcribed to their cDNA form were also cloned in bacterial p1asmids, facilitating the study of RNA virus genes. With the elucidation in recent years of the promoter sequence of various viral genes and the expression of these genes in bacteria or yeast, the...

Since the discovery of Australia antigen and its association with type B hepatitis, molecular characterization of the components making up hepatitis B virus (RBV) have been pursued with worldwide interest. Over the past two decades, such characterization has led to the development of sensitive assays to screen and exclude contaminated units from blood banks and has recently resulted in the licensing of several RBV vaccines. That more than 200 million people worldwide are chronically infected with RBV, and that they are at a high risk for the development of chronic hepatitis and hepatocellular...

The nucleotide sequence of the gene from which messenger RNA mole cules are transcribed is in a form that can be translated by cellular ribosomes into the amino acid sequence of a particular polypeptide, the product of the gene. The discovery of messenger RNA more than twenty years ago led to a series of studies on its organization and function in cells in the presence of infecting viruses. This volume is devoted to current studies in the field of cellular and viral messenger RNA. The studies presented provide an insight into molecular and genetic aspects of messenger RNA. Special attention...

Research on antiviral drugs and their mode of action in infected cells. in animals and in man. has led to a better understanding of the molecular pro cesses involved in virus replication. Screeninq of large numbers of natural and semisynthetic compounds resulted in the characterization of certain sub stances that had a limited efficiency as antiviral druqs. A few chemically synthesized compounds were also found to be effective as antiviral agents in the chemotherapy of human virus diseases. A major difficulty in the develop ment of effective antiviral agents has been the lack of selectivity....

Biosynthesis of cellular and viral DNA and RNA has been a major topic in molecular biology and biochemistry. The studies by Arthur Kornberg and his colleagues on the in-vitro synthesis of DNA have opened new avenues to understanding the processes controlling the duplication of the genetic information encoded in the DNA and RNA of bacterial and mammalian cells. Viral nucleic acids are replicated in infected cells (bacterial, plant, and animal) by virus coded enzymes with or without the involvement of proteins and enzymes coded by the host cells. The ability of the virus to replicate its genome...

Venezuelan equine encephalitis (VEE) virus was first isolated in 1938 by Kubes and Rios (1) from the brain of a horse which died during an epizootic of a previously unrecognized disease in Venezuela. VEE-related viruses were subsequently isolated during t e period of 1943-1963 in Venezuela, Colombia, Peru, Trinidad, Brazil, Surinam, Argentina, Panama, Mexico, and the United States (2) Shope et . (3) fi rst defi ned the vi ru ses in the VEE comp 1 ex t-y showing serological relationships between classical VEE, lucambo, and Pixuna viruses. Young and Johnson (2) serologically characterized a...

Herpesviruses, classified in the family Herpesviridae, are important human and animal pathogens that can cause primary, latent or recurrent infections and even cancer. The major interest in research on herpesviruses today focuses on understanding the organization of the DNA genome, as well as on characterizing the viral genes in regard to their control and function. Modern techniques have allowed the viral DNA to become a molecular tool in the study of gene function, since it is now possible to implant the DNA into eukaryotic cells. This book contains original studies on the structure and...