Lack of competition results in efficient packaging of heterologous murine retroviral RNAs and reticuloendotheliosis virus encapsidation-minus RNAs by the reticuloendotheliosis virus helper cell line.

We constructed recombinant reticuloendotheliosis virus (Rev)-derived and murine leukemia virus-derived vectors to characterize the specificity of packaging retroviral RNAs in Rev proteins. Using this approach, we further localized the Rev encapsidation sequence (E) to a 144-nucleotide region and determined that there are sequences in both the 5' and 3' halves of this region which are necessary in cis for viral replication. We found that the Rev E, like the murine leukemia virus E (psi), is position independent (R. Mann and D. Baltimore, J. Virol. 54:401-407, 1986). Also, a 156-nucleotide region of the Rev intron enhanced replication in a cis-acting fashion in the presence, but not in the absence, of helper virus. Finally, we showed that packaging of E- and heterologous retroviral genomes occurred efficiently in the Rev helper cell in the absence of competing E-containing (E+) viral RNAs.