Location and Characterization of the Bovine Herpesvirus Type 2 Thymidine Kinase Gene

The precise genomic location and the nucleotide sequence of the bovine herpesvirus type 2 (bovine herpes mammillitis virus) thymidine kinase (TK) gene have been determined. The genomic location of the TK gene was found to be in a similar position to that of herpes simplex virus. The coding region consists of 918 bases, which is slightly smaller in length than other reported herpesvirus TK genes. However with an M r of 38 108 the individual protein is similar in size to other herpesvirus TK enzymes. Despite there being only limited overall sequence homology with the TK genes of other herpesviruses, there are several regions of extensive homology at the amino acid level.