Equine herpesvirus 4 (EHV-1) is an alphaherpesvirus primarily associated with respiratory disease. The genome of this virus has been characterised (strain 1942) and a BamHI library prepared (Cullinane et al. , 1988). This dissertation reports the localisation of five intact EHV-4 genes within the U1 component of the genome . Homologues of HSV-1 genes UL22 (gH), UL23 (thymidine kinase), UL24, and UL44 (gC) were identified. An additional EHV-4 mapped to the left of the gC gene homologue has no apparent HSV-1 homologue. Partial nucleotide sequences were determined for EHV-4 homologues of HSV-1 genes UL21, and UL43. The map positions, nucleotide sequence, and predicited amino acid sequence of the products of these genes are detailed. The EHV-4 polypeptides are compared to their counterparts in other herpesviruses. Sequence analysis revealed a region of direct repeats and a putative origin of DNA replication proximal to the 3' end of the gH gene. Five peptides derived from the predicted amino acid sequences of the EHV-4 gpl3 (gC) and gH polypeptides were tested for their immunogenicity in a hamster model. The implications of these data are discussed in reference to the relatedness of EHV-4 to other herpesviruses in terms of sequence conservation (at the amino acid level) and in genome organisation. Finally, possible applications of the data to the development of novel EHV vaccines and diagnostic tests are outlined.
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