Sequence conservation of the outer capsid protein, VP5, of bluetongue virus, a contrasting feature to the outer capsid protein VP2

The complete nucleotide sequence of a cDNA clone representing the segment 5 RNA of bluetongue virus (BTV) United States serotype 13 was determined. The comparison of the predicted amino acid sequence of the encoded protein (VP5) with the sequences of VP5 from two BTV United States serotypes, 10 and 2, and two isolates of BTV serotype 1 (Australian and South African), revealed that the protein is highly conserved among the different serotypes despite their geographical separation.