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Guo J, Zhang P, Wu N, Liu W, Liu Y, Jin H, Francis F, Wang X. Transfection of entomopathogenic Metarhizium species with a mycovirus confers hypervirulence against two lepidopteran pests. Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A 2024; 121:e2320572121. [PMID: 38885380 PMCID: PMC11214047 DOI: 10.1073/pnas.2320572121] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Grants] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 11/22/2023] [Accepted: 04/25/2024] [Indexed: 06/20/2024] Open
Abstract
Although most known viruses infecting fungi pathogenic to higher eukaryotes are asymptomatic or reduce the virulence of their host fungi, those that confer hypervirulence to entomopathogenic fungus still need to be explored. Here, we identified and studied a novel mycovirus in Metarhizium flavoviride, isolated from small brown planthopper (Laodelphax striatellus). Based on molecular analysis, we tentatively designated the mycovirus as Metarhizium flavoviride partitivirus 1 (MfPV1), a species in genus Gammapartitivirus, family Partitiviridae. MfPV1 has two double-stranded RNAs as its genome, 1,775 and 1,575 bp in size respectively, encapsidated in isometric particles. When we transfected commercial strains of Metarhizium anisopliae and Metarhizium pingshaense with MfPV1, conidiation was significantly enhanced (t test; P-value < 0. 01), and the significantly higher mortality rates of the larvae of diamondback moth (Plutella xylostella) and fall armyworm (Spodoptera frugiperda), two important lepidopteran pests were found in virus-transfected strains (ANOVA; P-value < 0.05). Transcriptomic analysis showed that transcript levels of pathogenesis-related genes in MfPV1-infected M. anisopliae were obviously altered, suggesting increased production of metarhizium adhesin-like protein, hydrolyzed protein, and destruxin synthetase. Further studies are required to elucidate the mechanism whereby MfPV1 enhances the expression of pathogenesis-related genes and virulence of Metarhizium to lepidopteran pests. This study presents experimental evidence that the transfection of other entomopathogenic fungal species with a mycovirus can confer significant hypervirulence and provides a good example that mycoviruses could be used as a synergistic agent to enhance the biocontrol activity of entomopathogenic fungi.
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Affiliation(s)
- Jiashu Guo
- State Key Laboratory for Biology of Plant Diseases and Insect Pests, Institute of Plant Protection, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Beijing100193, China
- Functional & Evolutionary Entomology, University of Liège, Gembloux Agro-BioTech, 5030Gembloux, Belgium
| | - Peipei Zhang
- College of Life Sciences, Langfang Normal University, Langfang065000, China
| | - Nan Wu
- State Key Laboratory for Biology of Plant Diseases and Insect Pests, Institute of Plant Protection, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Beijing100193, China
| | - Wenwen Liu
- State Key Laboratory for Biology of Plant Diseases and Insect Pests, Institute of Plant Protection, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Beijing100193, China
| | - Yan Liu
- State Key Laboratory for Biology of Plant Diseases and Insect Pests, Institute of Plant Protection, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Beijing100193, China
| | - Huaibing Jin
- State Key Laboratory for Biology of Plant Diseases and Insect Pests, Institute of Plant Protection, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Beijing100193, China
| | - Frederic Francis
- Functional & Evolutionary Entomology, University of Liège, Gembloux Agro-BioTech, 5030Gembloux, Belgium
| | - Xifeng Wang
- State Key Laboratory for Biology of Plant Diseases and Insect Pests, Institute of Plant Protection, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences, Beijing100193, China
- Western Agricultural Research Center, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences,Changji831100, China
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Hough B, Steenkamp E, Wingfield B, Read D. Fungal Viruses Unveiled: A Comprehensive Review of Mycoviruses. Viruses 2023; 15:1202. [PMID: 37243288 PMCID: PMC10224137 DOI: 10.3390/v15051202] [Citation(s) in RCA: 11] [Impact Index Per Article: 11.0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [MESH Headings] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 04/14/2023] [Revised: 05/07/2023] [Accepted: 05/17/2023] [Indexed: 05/28/2023] Open
Abstract
Mycoviruses (viruses of fungi) are ubiquitous throughout the fungal kingdom and are currently classified into 23 viral families and the genus botybirnavirus by the International Committee on the Taxonomy of Viruses (ICTV). The primary focus of mycoviral research has been on mycoviruses that infect plant pathogenic fungi, due to the ability of some to reduce the virulence of their host and thus act as potential biocontrol against these fungi. However, mycoviruses lack extracellular transmission mechanisms and rely on intercellular transmission through the hyphal anastomosis, which impedes successful transmission between different fungal strains. This review provides a comprehensive overview of mycoviruses, including their origins, host range, taxonomic classification into families, effects on their fungal counterparts, and the techniques employed in their discovery. The application of mycoviruses as biocontrol agents of plant pathogenic fungi is also discussed.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | - Brenda Wingfield
- Forestry & Agricultural Biotechnology Institute (FABI), Department of Biochemistry, Genetics & Microbiology, University of Pretoria, Pretoria 0002, South Africa; (B.H.); (E.S.); (D.R.)
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Roossinck MJ. The Ups and Downs of an Out-of-the-Box Scientist with a Curious Mind. Annu Rev Virol 2022; 9:19-38. [PMID: 35512631 DOI: 10.1146/annurev-virology-100520-013446] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/09/2022]
Abstract
My early life was challenging, and not conducive to the study of science, but my first introduction to viruses was an epiphany for me. I spent the whole of my career dedicated to understanding viruses, driven largely by curiosity. This led me down many different avenues of study, and to work with many wonderful colleagues, most of whom remain friends. Some highlights of my career include the discovery of a mutualistic three-way symbiosis involving a virus, a fungus, and a plant; genetic mapping of a pathogenicity gene in tomato; uncovering a virus in 1,000-year-old corncobs; exploring virus biodiversity in wild plants; and establishing a system to use a fungal virus to understand the epidemiology of its host. Expected final online publication date for the Annual Review of Virology, Volume 9 is September 2022. Please see http://www.annualreviews.org/page/journal/pubdates for revised estimates.
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Affiliation(s)
- Marilyn J Roossinck
- Department of Plant Pathology and Environmental Microbiology, Center for Infectious Disease Dynamics, Pennsylvania State University, State College, Pennsylvania, USA;
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Velasco L, López-Herrera C, Cretazzo E. Two novel partitiviruses that accumulate differentially in Rosellinia necatrix and Entoleuca sp. infecting avocado. Virus Res 2020; 285:198020. [PMID: 32416260 DOI: 10.1016/j.virusres.2020.198020] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 03/10/2020] [Revised: 05/09/2020] [Accepted: 05/09/2020] [Indexed: 01/26/2023]
Abstract
Rosellinia necatrix is responsible for the white rot root disease of avocado in Southern Spain. Entoleuca sp. is a fungus isolated from roots of these same trees, but it is not pathogenic in avocado. Here, we describe two new species of partitiviruses detected in isolates of the avocado sympatric fungi Entoleuca sp. and R. necatrix, termed Entoleuca partitivirus 1 (EnPV1), genus Alphapartitivirus, and Entoleuca partitivirus 2 (EnPV2), genus Betapartitivirus. For both R. necatrix and Entoleuca sp., the dsRNA of the RdRp genomic segment of EnPV1 accumulates at a higher rate than the CP dsRNA, except for a set of Entoleuca sp. isolates where titers of the CP dsRNA are 35-50 times higher than those of the RdRp dsRNA and between 250-380 times higher than the CP dsRNA titers found in the rest of Entoleuca sp. and R. necatrix isolates. For EnPV2, the accumulation rates of the RdRp dsRNA in Entoleuca sp., is in most of the cases, higher than the CP dsRNA. In contrast, in R. necatrix isolates, EnPV2 dsRNA2 generally accumulates at a higher rate. Genetic analysis of the partitiviruses revealed that there is no apparent variation in the nucleotide sequences among the strains. RNA silencing of the partitiviruses appears to be limited in Entoleuca sp., as shown by small RNA sequencing. Finally, the investigation of the presence of these partitiviruses in a fungal collection revealed that they have no role in the pathogenicity of R. necatrix in avocado or in the avirulence of Entoleuca sp. in this host.
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Affiliation(s)
- Leonardo Velasco
- Instituto Andaluz De Investigación y Formación Agraria (IFAPA), 29130, Málaga, Spain.
| | | | - Enrico Cretazzo
- Instituto Andaluz De Investigación y Formación Agraria (IFAPA), 29130, Málaga, Spain
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