Characterization of human cytomegalovirus UL145 and UL136 genes in low-passage clinical isolates from infected Chinese infants.

Background: Human cytomegalovirus (HCMV) is a leading cause of morbidity and mortality in immunocompromised individuals. The unique long b' (ULB') region of HCMV contains at least 19 open reading frames (ORFs); however, little is known about the function of UL145 and UL136. We characterized UL145 and UL136 in low-passage clinical isolates from Chinese infants.