Yeast killer dsRNA plasmids are transcribed in vivo to produce full and partial-length plus-stranded RNAs.

In vivo transcripts of the L (4.5 kb) and M (1.9 kb) dsRNA plasmids were examined in type I killers of Saccharomyces cerevisiae. Transcripts for both plasmids include full-length (l,m) and partial-length (la,ma) single-stranded species. Both L-dsRNA transcripts (l,la) have in vitro mRNA activity for L-P1, previously shown to be identical to ScV-P1, the 88,000 dalton major capsid protein of the virus-like particles containing L- and M1-dsRNAs. 1, but not 1a, is bound to poly(U)-sepharose and may be polyadenylated. Other L-dsRNA gene products and their transcripts may exist. For M1-dsRNA, both species (m, ma) have in vitro mRNA activity for M1-P1, the 32,000 dalton pre-protoxin encoded by M1-dsRNA. Both m and ma are bound to poly(U)-Sepharose and ma is probably a 5' terminal fragment of m. A functional model for M1-dsRNA killer plasmid structure is presented.