Differential effects of an exotic plant virus on its two closely related vectors

Concurrent spread of Tomato yellow leaf curl virus (TYLCV) with invasion of Bemisia tabaci Q rather than B in China suggests a more mutualistic relationship between TYLCV and Q than B. To assess this hypothesis, we quantified the impacts of TYLCV on the performance and competitiveness of B and Q in the laboratory. The results showed that relative to their non-infected counterparts feeding on cotton (a non-host for TYLCV), infected B exhibited significant reductions in life-history traits, whereas infected Q only showed marginal reductions. While Q performed better on TYLCV-infected tomato plants than on uninfected ones, the reverse was observed in B. Q displacement by B took one more generation on TYLCV-infected tomato plants than on healthy ones. These results demonstrate that TYLCV was indirectly mutualistic to Q but directly and indirectly parasitic to B.