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Agroinfiltration and PVX Agroinfection in Potato and Nicotiana benthamiana
Published on: January 3, 2014
Host-specific effect of P1 exchange between two potyviruses
Beatriz Salvador1, Pilar Saénz, Emilio Yangüez
1Centro Nacional de Biotecnología-CSIC, Campus Universidad Autónoma de Madrid, 28049 Madrid, Spain.
Molecular Plant Pathology
|August 19, 2008
Summary
The P1 protein of potyviruses like Plum pox virus (PPV) and Tobacco vein mottling virus (TVMV) is crucial for determining which plants a virus can infect. Swapping P1 sequences between these viruses altered their host range, showing P1
Area of Science:
- Plant virology
- Molecular biology
- Genetics
Background:
- Potyviruses, including Plum pox virus (PPV) and Tobacco vein mottling virus (TVMV), exhibit distinct host specificities and disease symptoms.
- The P1 protein's role in potyvirus host compatibility and pathogenicity remains incompletely understood.
Purpose of the Study:
- To investigate the functional significance of the P1 protein in determining the host range and pathogenicity of PPV and TVMV.
- To assess the functional equivalence and host-specific activity of P1 proteins from different potyviruses.
Main Methods:
- Construction of chimeric potyviruses by exchanging P1 coding sequences between PPV and TVMV.
- Infection assays in herbaceous hosts (e.g., Nicotiana clevelandii) and a specific woody host (Prunus persicae).
- Comparative analysis of viral infectivity and symptom development in plants infected with wild-type and chimeric viruses.
Main Results:
- TVMV P1 and hybrid PPV/TVMV P1 proteins were functionally equivalent to PPV P1 in herbaceous hosts, despite significant sequence divergence.
- Incorporation of TVMV P1 sequences enhanced the infectivity of a low-virulence PPV chimera in Nicotiana clevelandii.
- PPV/TVMV hybrids failed to infect Prunus persicae, indicating TVMV P1 is not functional in this PPV-specific host.
Conclusions:
- The P1 protein plays a critical role in defining the host range of potyviruses.
- Functional differences in P1 proteins contribute to the distinct host specificities observed between PPV and TVMV.
- P1 protein sequence and function are key determinants of potyvirus-plant interactions.
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