Complete inhibition of tobamovirus multiplication by simultaneous mutations in two homologous host genes

Analysis of tobamovirus multiplication in Arabidopsis thaliana mutants defective in TOM2A homologues

The TOM2A gene of Arabidopsis thaliana encodes a four-pass transmembrane protein that is required for efficient multiplication of a tobamovirus, TMV-Cg. In this study, the involvement of three TOM2A homologues in tobamovirus multiplication in A. thaliana was examined. T-DNA insertion mutations in the three homologues, separately or in combination, did not affect TMV-Cg multiplication, whereas, in the tom2a genetic background, some combinations reduced it. This result suggests that the TOM2A homologues are functional in enhancing TMV-Cg multiplication, but their contribution is much less than TOM2A. Interestingly, the multiplication of another tobamovirus, Tomato mosaic virus, was not drastically affected by any combinations of the mutations in TOM2A and its homologues as far as we examined.

Whole proteome identification of plant candidate G-protein coupled receptors in Arabidopsis, rice, and poplar: computational prediction and in-vivo protein coupling

BACKGROUND

The classic paradigm of heterotrimeric G-protein signaling describes a heptahelical, membrane-spanning G-protein coupled receptor that physically interacts with an intracellular G alpha subunit of the G-protein heterotrimer to transduce signals. G-protein coupled receptors comprise the largest protein superfamily in metazoa and are physiologically important as they sense highly diverse stimuli and play key roles in human disease. The heterotrimeric G-protein signaling mechanism is conserved across metazoa, and also readily identifiable in plants, but the low sequence conservation of G-protein coupled receptors hampers the identification of novel ones. Using diverse computational methods, we performed whole-proteome analyses of the three dominant model plant species, the herbaceous dicot Arabidopsis thaliana (mouse-eared cress), the monocot Oryza sativa (rice), and the woody dicot Populus trichocarpa (poplar), to identify plant protein sequences most likely to be GPCRs.

RESULTS

Our stringent bioinformatic pipeline allowed the high confidence identification of candidate G-protein coupled receptors within the Arabidopsis, Oryza, and Populus proteomes. We extended these computational results through actual wet-bench experiments where we tested over half of our highest ranking Arabidopsis candidate G-protein coupled receptors for the ability to physically couple with GPA1, the sole G alpha in Arabidopsis. We found that seven out of eight tested candidate G-protein coupled receptors do in fact interact with GPA1. We show through G-protein coupled receptor classification and molecular evolutionary analyses that both individual G-protein coupled receptor candidates and candidate G-protein coupled receptor families are conserved across plant species and that, in some cases, this conservation extends to metazoans.

CONCLUSION

Our computational and wet-bench results provide the first step toward understanding the diversity, conservation, and functional roles of plant candidate G-protein coupled receptors.

Multiple roles of viral replication proteins in plant RNA virus replication

Identification of the roles of replication factors represents one of the major frontiers in current virus research. Among plant viruses, the positive-stranded (+) RNA viruses are the largest group and the most widespread. The central step in the infection cycles of (+) RNA viruses is RNA replication, which leads to rapid production of huge number of viral (+) RNA progeny in the infected plant cells. The RNA replication process is carried out by the virus-specific replicase complex consisting of viral RNA-dependent RNA polymerase, one or more auxiliary viral replication proteins, and host factors, which assemble in specialized membranous compartments in infected cells. Replication is followed by cell-to-cell and long-distance movement to invade the entire plant and/or encapsidation to facilitate transmission to new plants. This chapter provides an overview of our current understanding of the role of viral replication proteins during genome replication. The recent significant progress in this research area is based on development of powerful in vivo and in vitro approaches, including replicase assays, reverse genetic approaches, intracelular localization studies and the use of plant or yeast model hosts.

MELOGEN: an EST database for melon functional genomics

Background

Melon (Cucumis melo L.) is one of the most important fleshy fruits for fresh consumption. Despite this, few genomic resources exist for this species. To facilitate the discovery of genes involved in essential traits, such as fruit development, fruit maturation and disease resistance, and to speed up the process of breeding new and better adapted melon varieties, we have produced a large collection of expressed sequence tags (ESTs) from eight normalized cDNA libraries from different tissues in different physiological conditions.

Results

We determined over 30,000 ESTs that were clustered into 16,637 non-redundant sequences or unigenes, comprising 6,023 tentative consensus sequences (contigs) and 10,614 unclustered sequences (singletons). Many potential molecular markers were identified in the melon dataset: 1,052 potential simple sequence repeats (SSRs) and 356 single nucleotide polymorphisms (SNPs) were found. Sixty-nine percent of the melon unigenes showed a significant similarity with proteins in databases. Functional classification of the unigenes was carried out following the Gene Ontology scheme. In total, 9,402 unigenes were mapped to one or more ontology. Remarkably, the distributions of melon and Arabidopsis unigenes followed similar tendencies, suggesting that the melon dataset is representative of the whole melon transcriptome. Bioinformatic analyses primarily focused on potential precursors of melon micro RNAs (miRNAs) in the melon dataset, but many other genes potentially controlling disease resistance and fruit quality traits were also identified. Patterns of transcript accumulation were characterised by Real-Time-qPCR for 20 of these genes.

Conclusion

The collection of ESTs characterised here represents a substantial increase on the genetic information available for melon. A database (MELOGEN) which contains all EST sequences, contig images and several tools for analysis and data mining has been created. This set of sequences constitutes also the basis for an oligo-based microarray for melon that is being used in experiments to further analyse the melon transcriptome.

ATM-mediated transcriptional and developmental responses to gamma-rays in Arabidopsis

ATM (Ataxia Telangiectasia Mutated) is an essential checkpoint kinase that signals DNA double-strand breaks in eukaryotes. Its depletion causes meiotic and somatic defects in Arabidopsis and progressive motor impairment accompanied by several cell deficiencies in patients with ataxia telangiectasia (AT). To obtain a comprehensive view of the ATM pathway in plants, we performed a time-course analysis of seedling responses by combining confocal laser scanning microscopy studies of root development and genome-wide expression profiling of wild-type (WT) and homozygous ATM-deficient mutants challenged with a dose of γ-rays (IR) that is sublethal for WT plants. Early morphologic defects in meristematic stem cells indicated that AtATM, an Arabidopsis homolog of the human ATM gene, is essential for maintaining the quiescent center and controlling the differentiation of initial cells after exposure to IR. Results of several microarray experiments performed with whole seedlings and roots up to 5 h post-IR were compiled in a single table, which was used to import gene information and extract gene sets. Sequence and function homology searches; import of spatio-temporal, cell cycling, and mutant-constitutive expression characteristics; and a simplified functional classification system were used to identify novel genes in all functional classes. The hundreds of radiomodulated genes identified were not a random collection, but belonged to functional pathways such as those of the cell cycle; cell death and repair; DNA replication, repair, and recombination; and transcription; translation; and signaling, indicating the strong cell reprogramming and double-strand break abrogation functions of ATM checkpoints. Accordingly, genes in all functional classes were either down or up-regulated concomitantly with downregulation of chromatin deacetylases or upregulation of acetylases and methylases, respectively. Determining the early transcriptional indicators of prolonged S-G2 phases that coincided with cell proliferation delay, or an anticipated subsequent auxin increase, accelerated cell differentiation or death, was used to link IR-regulated hallmark functions and tissue phenotypes after IR. The transcription burst was almost exclusively AtATM-dependent or weakly AtATR-dependent, and followed two major trends of expression in atm: (i)-loss or severe attenuation and delay, and (ii)-inverse and/or stochastic, as well as specific, enabling one to distinguish IR/ATM pathway constituents. Our data provide a large resource for studies on the interaction between plant checkpoints of the cell cycle, development, hormone response, and DNA repair functions, because IR-induced transcriptional changes partially overlap with the response to environmental stress. Putative connections of ATM to stem cell maintenance pathways after IR are also discussed.

ATM-mediated transcriptional and developmental responses to gamma-rays in Arabidopsis

ATM (Ataxia Telangiectasia Mutated) is an essential checkpoint kinase that signals DNA double-strand breaks in eukaryotes. Its depletion causes meiotic and somatic defects in Arabidopsis and progressive motor impairment accompanied by several cell deficiencies in patients with ataxia telangiectasia (AT). To obtain a comprehensive view of the ATM pathway in plants, we performed a time-course analysis of seedling responses by combining confocal laser scanning microscopy studies of root development and genome-wide expression profiling of wild-type (WT) and homozygous ATM-deficient mutants challenged with a dose of gamma-rays (IR) that is sublethal for WT plants. Early morphologic defects in meristematic stem cells indicated that AtATM, an Arabidopsis homolog of the human ATM gene, is essential for maintaining the quiescent center and controlling the differentiation of initial cells after exposure to IR. Results of several microarray experiments performed with whole seedlings and roots up to 5 h post-IR were compiled in a single table, which was used to import gene information and extract gene sets. Sequence and function homology searches; import of spatio-temporal, cell cycling, and mutant-constitutive expression characteristics; and a simplified functional classification system were used to identify novel genes in all functional classes. The hundreds of radiomodulated genes identified were not a random collection, but belonged to functional pathways such as those of the cell cycle; cell death and repair; DNA replication, repair, and recombination; and transcription; translation; and signaling, indicating the strong cell reprogramming and double-strand break abrogation functions of ATM checkpoints. Accordingly, genes in all functional classes were either down or up-regulated concomitantly with downregulation of chromatin deacetylases or upregulation of acetylases and methylases, respectively. Determining the early transcriptional indicators of prolonged S-G2 phases that coincided with cell proliferation delay, or an anticipated subsequent auxin increase, accelerated cell differentiation or death, was used to link IR-regulated hallmark functions and tissue phenotypes after IR. The transcription burst was almost exclusively AtATM-dependent or weakly AtATR-dependent, and followed two major trends of expression in atm: (i)-loss or severe attenuation and delay, and (ii)-inverse and/or stochastic, as well as specific, enabling one to distinguish IR/ATM pathway constituents. Our data provide a large resource for studies on the interaction between plant checkpoints of the cell cycle, development, hormone response, and DNA repair functions, because IR-induced transcriptional changes partially overlap with the response to environmental stress. Putative connections of ATM to stem cell maintenance pathways after IR are also discussed.

[Host factors and their relevance to virus infection in plants]

Virus infection is established when viral proteins can interact with host factors to execute replication and/or cell-to-cell movement. Even after the virus infection has started, host resistance reactions, if trigged, would suppress further virus propagation. We would like to introduce what we understand about host factors as determinants of infection establishment and as key resistance molecules. Genome-wide information of Arabidopsis is providing us much information about such host factors involved in virus infection.

A TOM1 homologue is required for multiplication of Tobacco mosaic virus in Nicotiana benthamiana

The AtTOM1 gene of Arabidopsis thaliana had been shown to be essential for the efficient multiplication of Tobacco mosaic virus (TMV) in A. thaliana. In this study, we cloned an AtTOM1-like gene from Nicotiana benthamiana named as NbTOM1. Sequence alignment showed that NbTOM1 is closely related to AtTOM1 homologues of N. tabacum and Lycopersicon esculentum with 97.2% and 92.6% nucleotide sequence identities, respectively. Silencing of NbTOM1 by a modified viral satellite DNA-based vector resulted in complete inhibition of the multiplication of TMV in N. benthamiana. The result suggests that inhibition of NbTOM1 via RNA silencing is a potentially useful method for generating TMV-resistant plants.

Virus-induced disease: altering host physiology one interaction at a time

Virus infections are the cause of numerous plant disease syndromes that are generally characterized by the induction of disease symptoms such as developmental abnormalities, chlorosis, and necrosis. How viruses induce these disease symptoms represents a long-standing question in plant pathology. Recent studies indicate that symptoms are derived from specific interactions between virus and host components. Many of these interactions have been found to contribute to the successful completion of the virus life-cycle, although the role of other interactions in the infection process is not yet known. However, all share the potential to disrupt host physiology. From this information we are beginning to decipher the progression of events that lead from specific virus-host interactions to the establishment of disease symptoms. This review highlights our progress in understanding the mechanisms through which virus-host interactions affect host physiology. The emerging picture is one of complexity involving the individual effects of multiple virus-host interactions.

Arabidopsis tonoplast proteins TIP1 and TIP2 interact with the cucumber mosaic virus 1a replication protein

The cucumber mosaic virus (CMV) replication complex has previously been shown to associate with cellular membranes. However, it remains unknown whether any host factors participate in this process. In this study, five groups of Arabidopsis tonoplast intrinsic protein (TIP) genes were isolated and the proteins they encoded were evaluated with regard to their interactions with CMV proteins. TIP1 and TIP2 were found to interact with the CMV 1a protein in the Sos recruitment system, whereas no interactions with the other three TIP subgroups were observed in this assay. The interaction of CMV 1a with the TIP1 and TIP2 proteins was confirmed via co-immunoprecipitation assays. Additionally, CMV 1a co-localized with TIP1 and TIP2 in transfected Arabidopsis protoplasts. The findings of this study suggest that members of two TIP subfamilies might affect CMV replication via interaction with CMV 1a in the tonoplasts.

Involvement of THH1, an Arabidopsis thaliana homologue of the TOM1 gene, in tobamovirus multiplication

The TOM1 and TOM3 genes of Arabidopsis thaliana encode homologous proteins that are required for tobamovirus multiplication. Although the A. thaliana genome encodes another TOM1-like gene, THH1, the tobamovirus coat protein (CP) does not accumulate to a detectable level in the tom1 tom3 double mutant. Here, double and triple mutants of tom1, tom3 and thh1 were generated to investigate whether THH1 functions to support tobamovirus multiplication. In the tom1 thh1 double mutant, the tobamovirus CP accumulated to a level that was detectable, but lower than that in the tom1 single mutant. In tom1 tom3 double-mutant lines overexpressing THH1, the tobamovirus CP accumulated to a level similar to that observed in wild-type plants. These results suggest that THH1 supports tobamovirus multiplication, but to a lesser extent than TOM1 and TOM3. The expression level of THH1 is lower than that of TOM1 and TOM3, which might explain the smaller contribution of THH1 to tobamovirus multiplication.

Multiple resistance traits control Plum pox virus infection in Arabidopsis thaliana

Twelve Arabidopsis accessions were challenged with Plum pox potyvirus (PPV) isolates representative of the four PPV strains. Each accession supported local and systemic infection by at least some of the PPV isolates, but high variability was observed in the behavior of the five PPV isolates or the 12 Arabidopsis accessions. Resistance to local infection or long-distance movement occurred in about 40% of all the accession-isolate combinations analyzed. Except for Nd-1, all accessions showed resistance to local infection by PPV-SoC; in the Landsberg erecta (Ler) accession, this resistance was compromised by sgt1 and rar1 mutations, suggesting that it could be controlled by an R gene-mediated resistance pathway. While most of the susceptible accessions were symptomless, PPV induced severe symptoms on inflorescences in C24, Ler, and Bay-0 as early as 15 days after inoculation. Genetic analyses indicated that these interaction phenotypes are controlled by different genetic systems. The restriction of long-distance movement of PPV-El Amar and of another member of genus Potyvirus, Lettuce mosaic virus, in Col-0 requires the RTM genes, indicating for the first time that the RTM system may provide a broad range, potyvirus-specific protection against systemic infection. The restriction to PPV-PS long-distance movement in Cvi-1 is controlled by a single recessive gene, designated rpv1, which was mapped to chromosome 1. The nuclear inclusion polymerase b-capsid protein region of the viral genome appears to be responsible for the ability of PPV-R to overcome rpv1-mediated resistance.

Replication of positive-strand RNA viruses in plants: contact points between plant and virus components

Positive-strand RNA viruses constitute the largest group of plant viruses and have an important impact on world agriculture. These viruses have small genomes that encode a limited number of proteins and depend on their hosts to complete the various steps of their replication cycle. In this review, the contact points between positive-strand RNA plant viruses and their hosts, which are necessary for the translation and replication of the viral genomes, are discussed. Special emphasis is placed on the description of viral replication complexes that are associated with specific membranous compartments derived from plant intracellular membranes and contain viral RNAs and proteins as well as a variety of host proteins. These complexes are assembled via an intricate network of protein–protein, protein–membrane, and protein–RNA interactions. The role of host factors in regulating the assembly, stability, and activity of viral replication complexes are also discussed.

Tobamovirus-resistant tobacco generated by RNA interference directed against host genes

Two homologous Nicotiana tabacum genes NtTOM1 and NtTOM3 have been identified. These genes encode polypeptides with amino acid sequence similarity to Arabidopsis thaliana TOM1 and TOM3, which function in parallel to support tobamovirus multiplication. Simultaneous RNA interference against NtTOM1 and NtTOM3 in N. tabacum resulted in nearly complete inhibition of the multiplication of Tomato mosaic virus and other tobamoviruses, but did not affect plant growth or the ability of Cucumber mosaic virus to multiply. As TOM1 and TOM3 homologues are present in a variety of plant species, their inhibition via RNA interference should constitute a useful method for generating tobamovirus-resistant plants.

Viral RNA replication in association with cellular membranes

All plus-strand RNA viruses replicate in association with cytoplasmic membranes of infected cells. The RNA replication complex of many virus families is associated with the endoplasmic reticulum membranes, for example, picorna-, flavi-, arteri-, and bromoviruses. However, endosomes and lysosomes (togaviruses), peroxisomes and chloroplasts (tombusviruses), and mitochondria (nodaviruses) are also used as sites for RNA replication. Studies of individual nonstructural proteins, the virus-specific components of the RNA replicase, have revealed that the replication complexes are associated with the membranes and targeted to the respective organelle by the ns proteins rather than RNA. Many ns proteins have hydrophobic sequences and may transverse the membrane like polytopic integral membrane proteins, whereas others interact with membranes monotopically. Hepatitis C virus ns proteins offer examples of polytopic transmembrane proteins (NS2, NS4B), a “tip-anchored” protein attached to the membrane by an amphipathic α-helix (NS5A) and a “tail-anchored” posttranslationally inserted protein (NS5B). Semliki Forest virus nsP1 is attached to the plasma membrane by a specific binding peptide in the middle of the protein, which forms an amphipathic α-helix. Interaction of nsP1 with membrane lipids is essential for its capping enzyme activities. The other soluble replicase proteins are directed to the endo-lysosomal membranes only as part of the initial polyprotein. Poliovirus ns proteins utilize endoplasmic reticulum membranes from which vesicles are released in COPII coats. However, these vesicles are not directed to the normal secretory pathway, but accumulate in the cytoplasm. In many cases the replicase proteins induce membrane invaginations or vesicles, which function as protective environments for RNA replication.

Molecular characterization of a Melon necrotic spot virus strain that overcomes the resistance in melon and nonhost plants

Resistance of melon (Cucumis melo L.) to Melon necrotic spot virus (MNSV) is inherited as a single recessive gene, denoted nsv. No MNSV isolates described to date (e.g., MNSV-Malpha5), except for the MNSV-264 strain described here, are able to overcome the resistance conferred by nsv. Analysis of protoplasts of susceptible (Nsv/-) and resistant (nsv/nsv) melon cultivars inoculated with MNSV-264 or MNSV-Malpha5 indicated that the resistance trait conferred by this gene is expressed at the single-cell level. The nucleotide sequence of the MNSV-264 genome has a high nucleotide identity with the sequences of other MNSV isolates, with the exception of its genomic 3'-untranslated region (3'-UTR), where less than 50% of the nucleotides are shared between MNSV-264 and the other two MNSV isolates completely sequenced to date. Uncapped RNAs transcribed from a full-length MNSV-264 cDNA clone were infectious and caused symptoms indistinguishable from those caused by the parental viral RNA. This cDNA clone allowed generation of chimeric mutants between MNSV-264 and MNSV-Malpha5 through the exchange of the last 74 nucleotides of their coat protein (CP) open reading frames and the complete 3'-UTRs. Analysis of protoplasts of susceptible and resistant melon cultivars inoculated with chimeric mutants clearly showed that the MNSV avirulence determinant resides in the exchanged region. The carboxy-termini of the CP of both isolates are identical; therefore, the avirulence determinant likely consists of the RNA sequence itself. We also demonstrated that this genomic region contains the determinant for the unique ability of the isolate MNSV-264 to infect noncucurbit hosts (Nicotiana benthamiana and Gomphrena globosa).

Advances in understanding recessive resistance to plant viruses

SUMMARY Recent work carried out to characterize recessive mutations which render experimental hosts non-permissive to viral infection (loss-of-susceptibility mutants) seems to be converging with new data on natural recessive resistance in crop species, and also with functional analyses of virus avirulence determinants. Perhaps the most well known examples are the studies that identified the eukaryotic translation initiation factors 4E(iso) (eIF(iso)4E) and 4E(eIF4E) as the host factors required for potyvirus multiplication within experimental and natural hosts, respectively, and the potyviral genome-linked protein (VPg) as the viral factor that directly interacts with eIF4E to promote potyvirus multiplication. The purpose of this paper is to review the available information on the characterization of loss-of-susceptibility mutants in experimental hosts, natural recessive resistances and virus avirulence factors, and also to comment on possible implications for the design of new sources of sustainable virus resistance.

Cross-protection in Arabidopsis against crucifer tobamovirus Cg by an attenuated strain of the virus

SUMMARY Cross-protection is a procedure that has been utilized to protect crops against virulent strains of viruses by pre-treatment with closely related attenuated strains of the virus. We constructed a mutant of crucifer tobamovirus Cg, which is analogous to L(11)A, an attenuated strain of Tomato mosaic virus-L (ToMV-L). This mutant, named CgYD, caused few disease symptoms and could spread throughout Arabidopsis thaliana Col-0 plants. Initial infection with CgYD was shown to efficiently cross-protect against a challenge with wild-type Cg. Thus, we have established in Arabidopsis a powerful system for investigating mechanisms of cross-protection. Using this system, we showed that cross-protection was not overcome, even if a higher concentration of the virion, or purified virion RNA, were used in the challenge. We also demonstrated that cross-protection requires that the second virus be very similar in sequence to Cg, which is a characteristic of RNA silencing. However the RNA dependent RNA polymerase SDE1/SGS2 associated with post-transcriptional gene silencing was not required for cross-protection.

Turnip vein-clearing virus, from pathogen to host expression profile

SUMMARY Taxonomy: Turnip vein-clearing virus (TVCV) is a member of subgroup 3 of the Tobamovirus genus and is thus a member of the alphavirus-like supergroup of positive sense RNA-containing viruses. Physical properties: Virions, typical of tobamoviruses, are rod-shaped and consist of a single species of four-helix bundle capsid proteins of 17 kDa helically arranged around a 6.3 knt RNA which accounts for 5% of the virion mass. Virions are stable for years. Hosts: Members of the crucifer family are excellent hosts. Particularly noteworthy is that hosts include the model plant for molecular genetics, Arabidopsis thaliana. No non-mechanical vectors of transmission are known.

Arabidopsis TOBAMOVIRUS MULTIPLICATION (TOM) 2 locus encodes a transmembrane protein that interacts with TOM1

The tom2-1 mutation of Arabidopsis thaliana reduces the efficiency of intracellular multiplication of tobamoviruses. The tom2-1 mutant was derived from fast-neutron-irradiated seeds, and the original mutant line also carries ttm1, a dominant modifier that increases tobamovirus multiplication efficiency in a tobamovirus-strain-specific manner in the tom2-1 genetic background. Here, we show that the tom2-1 mutation involved a deletion of approximately 20 kb in the nuclear genome. The deleted region included two genes named TOM2A and TOM2B that were both associated with the tom2-1 phenotype, whereas ttm1 corresponded to the translocation of part of the deleted region that included intact TOM2B but not TOM2A. TOM2A encodes a 280 amino acid putative four-pass transmembrane protein with a C-terminal farnesylation signal, while TOM2B encodes a 122 amino acid basic protein. The split-ubiquitin assay demonstrated an interaction of TOM2A both with itself and with TOM1, an integral membrane protein of A.thaliana presumed to be an essential constituent of tobamovirus replication complex. The data presented here suggest that TOM2A is also an integral part of the tobamovirus replication complex.

Subcellular localization of host and viral proteins associated with tobamovirus RNA replication

Arabidopsis TOM1 (AtTOM1) and TOM2A (AtTOM2A) are integral membrane proteins genetically identified to be necessary for efficient intracellular multiplication of tobamoviruses. AtTOM1 interacts with the helicase domain polypeptide of tobamovirus-encoded replication proteins and with AtTOM2A, suggesting that both AtTOM1 and AtTOM2A are integral components of the tobamovirus replication complex. We show here that AtTOM1 and AtTOM2A proteins tagged with green fluorescent protein (GFP) are targeted to the vacuolar membrane (tonoplast)-like structures in plant cells. In subcellular fractionation analyses, GFP-AtTOM2A, AtTOM2A and its tobacco homolog NtTOM2A were predominantly fractionated to low-density tonoplast-rich fractions, whereas AtTOM1-GFP, AtTOM1 and its tobacco homolog NtTOM1 were distributed mainly into the tonoplast-rich fractions and partially into higher-buoyant-density fractions containing membranes from several other organelles. The tobamovirus-encoded replication proteins were co-fractionated with both NtTOM1 and viral RNA-dependent RNA polymerase activity. The replication proteins were also found in the fractions containing non-membrane-bound proteins, but neither NtTOM1 nor the polymerase activity was detected there. These observations suggest that the formation of tobamoviral RNA replication complex occurs on TOM1-containing membranes and is facilitated by TOM2A.

The p23 protein of hibiscus chlorotic ringspot virus is indispensable for host-specific replication

Hibiscus chlorotic ringspot virus (HCRSV) possesses a novel open reading frame (ORF) which encodes a putative 23-kDa protein (p23). We report here the in vivo detection of p23 and demonstrate its essential role in viral replication. The expression of p23 could be detected in protein extracts from transfected kenaf (Hibiscus cannabinus L.) protoplasts and in HCRSV-infected leaves. Further, direct immunoblotting of infected kenaf leaves also showed the presence of p23, and transient expression in onion and kenaf cells demonstrated that the protein is distributed throughout the cell. Site-directed mutagenesis showed that mutations introduced into the ORF of p23 abolished viral replication in kenaf protoplasts and plants but not in Chenopodium quinoa L. The loss of function of the p23 mutant M23/S33-1 could be complemented in trans upon the induced expression of p23 from an infiltrated construct bearing the ORF (pCam23). Altogether, these results demonstrate that p23 is a bona fide HCRSV protein that is expressed in vivo and suggest that p23 is indispensable for the host-specific replication of HCRSV. In addition, we show that p23 does not bind nucleic acids in vitro and does not act as a suppressor of posttranscriptional gene silencing in transgenic tobacco carrying a green fluorescent protein.

A natural recessive resistance gene against potato virus Y in pepper corresponds to the eukaryotic initiation factor 4E (eIF4E)

We show here that the pvr2 locus in pepper, conferring recessive resistance against strains of potato virus Y (PVY), corresponds to a eukaryotic initiation factor 4E (eIF4E) gene. RFLP analysis on the PVY-susceptible and resistant pepper cultivars, using an eIF4E cDNA from tobacco as probe, revealed perfect map co-segregation between a polymorphism in the eIF4E gene and the pvr2 alleles, pvr2(1) (resistant to PVY-0) and pvr2(2) (resistant to PVY-0 and 1). The cloned pepper eIF4E cDNA encoded a 228 amino acid polypeptide with 70-86% nucleotide sequence identity with other plant eIF4Es. The sequences of eIF4E protein from two PVY-susceptible cultivars were identical and differed from the eIF4E sequences of the two PVY-resistant cultivars Yolo Y (YY) (pvr2(1)) and FloridaVR2 (F) (pvr2(2)) at two amino acids, a mutation common to both resistant genotypes and a second mutation specific to each. Complementation experiments were used to show that the eIF4E gene corresponds to pvr2. Thus, potato virus X-mediated transient expression of eIF4E from susceptible cultivar Yolo Wonder (YW) in the resistant genotype YY resulted in loss of resistance to subsequent PVY-0 inoculation and transient expression of eIF4E from YY (resistant to PVY-0; susceptible to PVY-1) rendered genotype F susceptible to PVY-1. Several lines of evidence indicate that interaction between the potyvirus genome-linked protein (VPg) and eIF4E are important for virus infectivity, suggesting that the recessive resistance could be due to incompatibility between the VPg and eIF4E in the resistant genotype.

A nuclear localization signal and a membrane association domain contribute to the cellular localization of the Tobacco mosaic virus 126-kDa replicase protein

A transient expression system using onion epidermal cells was used to investigate domains of the Tobacco mosaic virus (TMV) 126-kDa replicase protein involved in cellular localization. Initially, a nuclear localization signal (NLS), identified within the amino-terminus of the 126-kDa protein, was investigated for its functionality using fusion constructs containing the green fluorescent protein (GFP). Fusion of the amino-terminal 70 amino acids of the 126-kDa protein, containing the NLS, to a beta-glucuronidase-GFP open reading frame (ORF), directed the accumulation of fluorescence to the nucleus. In contrast, similar constructs lacking the NLS or containing a mutated NLS sequence failed to accumulate within the nucleus. Additional investigations using GFP fusion constructs containing the first 178 or 388 amino acids of the 126-kDa protein also displayed nuclear localization. However, fusion constructs encoding the first 781 amino acids or the entire 126-kDa ORF did not accumulate within the nucleus but instead associated with the endoplasmic reticulum (ER), forming spot-like inclusions. Thus, a dominant ER association domain exists between amino acids 388 and 781 of the 126-kDa protein. Interestingly, a full-length 126-kDa GFP fusion construct encoding a nonfunctional NLS mutation also localized to the ER but did not form inclusions. Furthermore, a TMV mutant containing the same nonfunctional NLS mutation failed to replicate in protoplasts. Together these findings suggest that both the NLS and the ER retention domain contribute to the functional localization of the 126-kDa protein.

The dialogue between viruses and hosts in compatible interactions

Understanding the biological principles behind virus-induced symptom expression in plants remains a longstanding challenge. By dissecting the compatible host-virus relationship temporally and genetically, we have begun to map out the relationships of its component parts. The picture that emerges is one in which host gene expression and physiology are under tight temporal control during infection.