Conserved domains of glycoprotein B (gB) of the monkey virus, simian agent 8, identified by comparison with herpesvirus gBs.

The herpesvirus simian agent 8 (SA8) gene which corresponds to the herpes simplex virus (HSV) gene encoding glycoprotein B (gB) was localized, cloned and sequenced. Comparison of its deduced amino acid sequence with those of its counterparts in 12 other distinct herpesviruses was used to evaluate their homology and phylogenetic relationship. The results emphasized that SA8 gB is more closely related to those of HSV-1 and -2, and bovine herpesvirus 2 than to the homologous proteins of other herpesviruses. Furthermore, the alignment showed several regions of domains conserved in the closely related sequences, including four conserved in all the herpesvirus gB sequences examined. The conservation of 10 cysteine residues and most of the proline residues, as well as several potential N-glycosylation sites, suggested that the secondary and tertiary structures of these gBs were similar.