Jove
Visualize
Contact Us
JoVE
x logofacebook logolinkedin logoyoutube logo
ABOUT JoVE
OverviewLeadershipBlogJoVE Help Center
AUTHORS
Publishing ProcessEditorial BoardScope & PoliciesPeer ReviewFAQSubmit
LIBRARIANS
TestimonialsSubscriptionsAccessResourcesLibrary Advisory BoardFAQ
RESEARCH
JoVE JournalMethods CollectionsJoVE Encyclopedia of ExperimentsArchive
EDUCATION
JoVE CoreJoVE BusinessJoVE Science EducationJoVE Lab ManualFaculty Resource CenterFaculty Site
Terms & Conditions of Use
Privacy Policy
Policies

Related Experiment Videos

Viroids: the minimal non-coding RNAs with autonomous replication.

Ricardo Flores1, Sonia Delgado, María-Eugenia Gas

  • 1Instituto de Biología Molecular y Celular de Plantas (UPV-CSIC), Universidad Politécnica de Valencia, 46022 Valencia, Spain. rflores@ibmcp.upv.es

FEBS Letters
|May 29, 2004
PubMed
Summary
This summary is machine-generated.

Related Concept Videos

You might also read

Related Articles

Articles linked to this work by shared authors, journal, and citation graph.

Sort by
Same author

A viroid-like RNA can be transmitted among different <i>Trichoderma</i> species affecting their antagonistic capacity.

mBio·2026
Same author

Minimal small RNA precursors unlock virus-based precision RNAi.

Trends in plant science·2026
Same author

Prediction of maturity-onset diabetes of the young subtypes using machine learning.

Frontiers in digital health·2026
Same author

New viral sequences and endogenous viral elements (EVE) in world-wide populations of Trioza erytreae, the African citrus psyllid.

Virus research·2026
Same author

A replication-competent deltavirus from the marsupial fat-tailed dunnart <i>Sminthopsis crassicaudata</i>.

The Journal of general virology·2026
Same author

Enhanced microRNA accumulation and gene silencing efficiency through optimized precursor base pairing.

The Plant journal : for cell and molecular biology·2026

Viroids are small, non-coding RNAs that replicate in plants. Their replication involves RNA-based rolling-circle mechanisms and may cause disease by interfering with plant development via RNA silencing.

Area of Science:

  • Plant pathology
  • Molecular biology
  • Virology

Background:

  • Viroids are minimal infectious agents, consisting of small, non-coding, circular RNAs (246–401 nucleotides).
  • They autonomously replicate within specific plant hosts.
  • Viroids are categorized into two families: Pospiviroidae (nuclear replication) and Avsunviroidae (chloroplast replication).

Purpose of the Study:

  • To elucidate the replication mechanism of viroids.
  • To understand the process of disease induction by viroids.

Main Methods:

  • The study describes the three-step RNA-based rolling-circle replication mechanism.
  • It highlights the role of host DNA-dependent RNA polymerases in synthesizing longer-than-unit strands.
  • Processing to unit-length strands and subsequent circularization are detailed, noting hammerhead ribozymes in Avsunviroidae.

Related Experiment Videos

Main Results:

  • Viroid replication proceeds via synthesis of longer-than-unit strands, processing, and circularization.
  • Hammerhead ribozymes mediate processing in the Avsunviroidae family.
  • Viroid-specific small interfering RNAs may accumulate and induce disease through RNA silencing.

Conclusions:

  • Viroid replication is an RNA-templated process utilizing host machinery.
  • RNA silencing, mediated by viroid-derived small RNAs, is a potential mechanism for viroid-induced pathogenesis.
  • Understanding these mechanisms is crucial for managing viroid diseases in plants.