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Near-complete genome sequence and seed transmission evaluation of Physalis rugose mosaic virus from southern Brazil

Sequência do genoma completo e avaliação da transmissão por sementes do Physalis rugose mosaic virus no sul do Brasil

ABSTRACT:

Physalis rugose mosaic virus (PhyRMV) causes severe damage to Physalis peruviana L., affecting vegetative parameters, fruit quantity and quality. The aim of this study was to perform a molecular characterization of PhyRMV associated with P. peruviana from commercial fields in the municipality of Lages, Santa Catarina State, Southern Brazil, and to evaluate its transmission by seeds. Plants displaying mosaic, dwarfism, and leaf malformation symptoms were collected from P. peruviana. Double-stranded RNA was extracted and submitted to cDNA library synthesis and high-throughput sequencing (HTS). For the virus transmission assay, seeds from PhyRMV-infected plants were used, and viral infection in seedlings was verified using symptomatic and molecular diagnosis. PhyRMV RNA has 4162 nucleotides (nts) and a genomic organization similar to that of other sobemoviruses and shares 97% nt identity with the previously characterized PhyRMV Piracicaba isolate. Results indicated the unlikely transmission of PhyRMV by physalis seeds.

Key words:
characterization; PhyRMV; Sobemovirus

RESUMO:

Physalis rugose mosaic virus (PhyRMV) causa danos severos em Physalis peruviana L., afetando características vegetativas, a quantidade e qualidade de frutos. Os objetivos desse estudo consistem na caracterização molecular do PhyRMV associado a P. peruviana coletada em campos de produção em Lages, Santa Catarina, Brasil; e avaliar a transmissão do vírus por sementes. Plantas apresentando sintomas de mosaico, deformação e nanismo foram coletadas de P. peruviana. Amostras foliares dessas plantas foram utilizadas para extração de RNA de fita dupla, síntese de biblioteca de cDNA e sequenciamento de alto rendimento. No experimento de transmissão, sementes obtidas de plantas infectadas por PhyRMV foram utilizadas, e a infecção viral nas plântulas foi avaliada por inspeção visual de sintomas e diagnóstico molecular. O RNA viral apresentou 4162 nucleotideos (nts), a organização genômica foi similar à de outros sobemovírus e apresentou 97% de identidade de nucleotídeos com o isolado de Piracicaba de PhyRMV previamente caracterizado. Os resultados obtidos sugerem que é improvável a transmissão de PhyRMV por sementes de physalis.

Palavras-chave:
caracterização; PhyRMV; Sobemovirus

Physalis peruviana L. is a small fruit belonging to the Solanaceae family, well known for its high nutritional and economic value. In the American continent, the cultivation of plants of this solanaceous species has been increasing in recent years, especially in higher altitude regions in tropical and subtropical countries (FISCHER; MIRANDA, 2012FISCHER, G.; MIRANDA, D. Uchuva (Physalis peruviana L.). In: FISCHER, G. (Org.). Manual para el cultivo de frutales en el trópico. 1. ed. Bogotá: Produmedios, 2012, p.851-873. ). P. peruviana can be asexually propagated, but the main propagation form is through seeds (MUNIZ et al., 2014MUNIZ, J. et al. General aspects of physalis cultivation. Ciência Rural, 2014. v.44, n.6, p.964-970. Available from: <Available from: https://www.scielo.br/scielo.php?script=sci_arttext&pid=S0103-84782014000600002 >. Accessed: Apr. 12, 2020. doi: 10.1590/S0103-84782014005000006.
https://www.scielo.br/scielo.php?script=...
).

Twenty-one viruses belonging to 14 genera have been reported to infect P. peruviana worldwide (AGUIRRE-RÁQUIRA et al., 2014AGUIRRE-RÁQUIRA, W. et al. Potyvirus affecting uchuva (Physalis peruviana L.) in Centro Agropecuario Marengo, Colombia. Agricultural Sciences, 2014. v.5, n.5, p.897-905. Available from: <Available from: https://www.scirp.org/journal/paperinformation.aspx?paperid=49304 >. Accessed: Jul. 11, 2020. doi: 10.4236/as.2014.510097.
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; DALLOS et al., 2010DALLOS, M. P. et al. Physalis peruviana - Uchuva. In: DALLOS, M. P.;et al. (Org.). Biotecnología aplicada al mejoramiento de los cultivos de frutas tropicales. 1. ed. Bogotá: Universidad Nacional de Colombia, 2010, p. 466-490. ; FARIÑA et al., 2019FARIÑA, A. E. et al. Molecular and biological characterization of a putative new sobemovirus infecting Physalis peruviana. Archives of Virology, 2019. v.164, n.11. Available from: <Available from: https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s00705-019-04374-y >. Accessed: May, 12, 2020. doi: 10.1007/s00705-019-04374-y.
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; GÁMEZ-JIMÉNEZ et al., 2009GÁMEZ-JIMÉNEZ, C. et al. Tomatillo (Physalis ixocarpa) as a natural new host for tomato yellow leaf curl virus in Sinaloa, Mexico. Plant Disease, 2009. v.93, n.5, p.545. Available from: <Available from: https://apsjournals.apsnet.org/doi/10.1094/PDIS-93-5-0545A >. Accessed: Jun. 15, 2020. doi: 10.1094/PDIS-93-5-0545A.
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; GARCÍA et al, 2020GARCÍA, Y. G.; et al. Detection of RNA viruses in cape gooseberry (Physalis peruviana L.) by RNAseq using total RNA and dsRNA inputs. Archives of Phytopathology and Plant Protection, 2020. v.53, n.9-10, p.395-413. Available from: <Available from: https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/03235408.2020.1748368 >. Accessed: Apr. 12, 2020. doi: 10.1080/03235408.2020.1748368.
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; GRAÇA et al. 1985GRAÇA, J. V. et al.. Tomato spotted wilt virus in commercial cape gooseberry (Physalis peruviana) in Transkei. Plant Pathology, 1985. v.34, n.3, p.451-453. Available from: <Available from: https://bsppjournals.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1111/j.1365-3059.1985.tb01390.x. > Accessed: Apr. 12, 2020. doi: 10.1111/j.1365-3059.1985.tb01390.x.
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; GUTIÉRREZ et al., 2015GUTIÉRREZ, P. A. et al. Complete genome sequence of an isolate of potato virus X (PVX) infecting cape gooseberry (Physalis peruviana) in Colombia. Virus Genes, 2015. v.50, n.3, p.518-522. Available from: <Available from: https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007%2Fs11262-015-1181-1 >. Accessed: Apr. 12, 2020. doi: 10.1007/s11262-015-1181-1.
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; KISTEN et al., 2016KISTEN, L. et al. First report of potato virus Y (PVY) on Physalis peruviana in South Africa. Plant Disease, 2016. v.100, n.7, p.1511. Available from: <Available from: https://apsjournals.apsnet.org/doi/full/10.1094/PDIS-12-15-1442-PDN >. Accessed: Apr. 12, 2020. doi: 10.1094/PDIS-12-15-1442-PDN.
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; PRAKASH et al., 1988PRAKASH, O. et al. Isolation, purification and electron microscopy of mosaic virus of cape gooseberry. International journal of tropical plant diseases, 1988. v.6, p.85-87. Available from: <Available from: https://scholar.google.cl/scholar?cluster=10276583797143643105&hl=pt-BR&as_sdt=0,5&as_vis=1 >. Accessed: Apr. 12, 2020.
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; SALAMON; PALKOVICS, 2005SALAMON, P.; PALKOVICS, L. Occurrence of colombian datura virus in brugmansia hybrids, Physalis peruviana L. and Solanum muricatum ait. in Hungary. Acta Virologica, 2005. v.49, n.2, p.117-122. Available from: <Available from: http://www.elis.sk/index.php?page=shop.product_details&flypage=flypage.tpl&product_id=96&category_id=4&option=com_virtuemart&vmcchk=1&Itemid=1 >. Accessed: Apr. 2020.
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; THOMAS; HASSAN, 2002THOMAS, P. E.; HASSAN, S. First report of twenty-two new hosts of potato leafroll virus. Plant Disease, 2002. v.86, n.5, p.561-561. Available from: <Available from: https://apsjournals.apsnet.org/doi/10.1094/PDIS.2002.86.5.561A >. Accessed: May, 12, 2020. doi: 10.1094/PDIS.2002.86.5.561A.
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; TRENADO et al., 2007TRENADO, H. P. et al. Physalis ixocarpa and P. peruviana, new natural hosts of tomato chlorosis virus. European Journal of Plant Pathology, 2007. v.118, p.193-196. Available from: <Available from: https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007%2Fs10658-007-9129-5 >. Accessed: Apr. 12, 2020. doi: 10.1007/s10658-007-9129-5.
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). In Brazil, there have been reports of two orthotospoviruses, tomato chlorotic spot virus (TCSV) and groundnut ringspot virus (GRSV) (EIRAS et al., 2012EIRAS, M. et al. First report of a tospovirus in a commercial crop of cape gooseberry in Brazil. New Disease Reports, 2012. v.25, p.25. Available from: <Available from: https://www.ndrs.org.uk/article.php?id=025025 >. Accessed: May, 12, 2020. doi: 10.5197/j.2044-0588.2012.025.025.
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; ESQUIVEL et al., 2018ESQUIVEL, A. F. et al. First report of groundnut ring spot virus on Physalis peruviana in Brazil. Plant Disease, 2018. v.102, n.7, p.1468. Available from: <Available from: https://apsjournals.apsnet.org/doi/full/10.1094/PDIS-10-17-1684-PDN >. Accessed: Apr. 10, 2020. doi: 10.1094/PDIS-10-17-1684-PDN.
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), and a putative new sobemovirus named physalis rugose mosaic virus (PhyRMV) (FARIÑA et al., 2019).

Plants of P. peruviana infected with PhyRMV showed symptoms of mosaic, leaf malformation, and dwarfism (Fariña et al. 2019FARIÑA, A. E. et al. Molecular and biological characterization of a putative new sobemovirus infecting Physalis peruviana. Archives of Virology, 2019. v.164, n.11. Available from: <Available from: https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s00705-019-04374-y >. Accessed: May, 12, 2020. doi: 10.1007/s00705-019-04374-y.
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and Figure 1A). This virus has already been detected in plants from three Brazilian States (Paraná, Santa Catarina and São Paulo), causing severe symptoms and reduced production (FARIÑA et al., 2019FARIÑA, A. E. et al. Molecular and biological characterization of a putative new sobemovirus infecting Physalis peruviana. Archives of Virology, 2019. v.164, n.11. Available from: <Available from: https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s00705-019-04374-y >. Accessed: May, 12, 2020. doi: 10.1007/s00705-019-04374-y.
https://link.springer.com/article/10.100...
; GORAYEB et al., 2020GORAYEB, E. S. et al. Damage quantification in Physalis peruviana L. infected by the new putative sobemovirus physalis rugose mosaic virus. Tropical Plant Pathology, 2020. Available from: <Available from: https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s40858-020-00354-9 >. Accessed: Jun. 15, 2020. doi: 10.1007/s40858-020-00354-9.
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). Additionally, it has the potential to infect other important species such as Capsicum annuum, Nicotiana tabacum, and Solanum lycopersicum (FARIÑA et al., 2019).

Figure 1
(A) Physalis peruviana infected by physalis rugose mosaic virus (PhyRMV) showing mosaic, malformation and blister symptoms (left), and dwarfism (right). (B) Electrophoretic analyses of the PCR products for the detection of PhyRMV from original samples collected. MM: 1 kb molecular ladder; C-: not-infected P. peruviana (negative control); C+: PhyRMV-infected P. peruviana (positive control); 1: original dsRNA extracted from P. peruviana leaves. (C) Phylogenetic relationship based on the alignment of the PhyRMV near-complete genome and other members of the genus Sobemovirus. General Time Reversible (GTR) model with gamma distribution (G) was used and bootstrap support of 8,000 replications. The alignment for phylogeny was performed with the MUSCLE tool available in the MEGA X program. The numbers on the branches indicate the bootstrap values. Members of the Sobemovirus genus are: artemisia virus A (ArtVA; JN620802), blueberry shoestring virus (BSSV; LC081344), cocksfoot mottle virus (CfMV; L40905), cymbidium chlorotic mosaic virus (CyCMV; LC019764), imperata virus (IYMV; AM990928), lucerne transient streak virus (LTSV; JQ782213), papaya lethal yellowing virus (PLYV; JX123318), rice yellow mottle virus (RYMV; MG599280), rottboellia yellow mottle virus (RoMoV; KC577469), ryegrass mottle virus (RGMoV; AB040446), sesbania mosaic virus (SeMV; AY004291), solanum nodiflorum mottle virus (SNMoV; KC577470), southern bean mosaic virus (SBMV; AF055887), southern cowpea mosaic virus (SCPMV; M23021), sowbane mosaic virus (SoMV; AM940437), soybean yellow common mosaic virus (SYCMV; JF495127), subterranean clover mottle virus (SCMoV; AF208001), turnip rosette virus (TRoV; AY177608), velvet tobacco mottle virus (VTMoV; HM754263), and physalis rugose mosaic virus (PhyRMV; MK681145). The arrow indicates the isolate characterized in this study.

Transmission of viruses through seeds is an intrinsic property of about 25% of viruses that infect plants (JOHANSEN et al., 1994JOHANSEN, E. et al. Seed transmission of viruses: Current perspectives. Annual Review of Phytopathology, 1994. v.32, p.363-386. Available from: <Available from: https://www.annualreviews.org/doi/abs/10.1146/annurev.py.32.090194.002051 >. Accessed: Apr. 12, 2020. doi: 10.1146/annurev.py.32.090194.002051.
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; SASTRY, 2013SASTRY, K. S. Seed-borne plant virus diseases. 1st. ed. New Delhi: Springer India, 2013. ). Among sobemoviruses, southern bean mosaic virus (SBMV), southern cowpea mosaic virus (SCPMV), sowbane mosaic virus (SoMV), subterranean clover mottle virus (SCMoV), and snake melon asteroid mosaic virus (SMAMV) are seed-transmissible (SÕMERA et al., 2015SÕMERA, M. et al. Overview on sobemoviruses and a proposal for the creation of the family Sobemoviridae. Viruses, 2015. v.7, n.6, p.3076-3115. Available from: <Available from: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4488728/ >. Accessed: Apr. 12, 2020. doi: 10.3390/v7062761.
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/article...
). Seed transmission has epidemiological importance, since a pathogen transmitted by seeds has considerable potential for survival and longevity and can escape unfavorable conditions (SALAUDEEN, 2012SALAUDEEN, M. T. Resistance in rice to rice yellow mottle virus and evidence of non-seed transmission. Archives of Phytopathology and Plant Protection, 2012. v.45, p.2406-2413. Available from: <Available from: https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/03235408.2012.727328 >. Accessed May, 12, 2020. doi: 10.1080/03235408.2012.727328.
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). In addition, the ability to infect a seed may favor virus spread to new areas, as is the case of the SCMoV, which is believed to have been introduced in Australia through infected seeds during European colonization (JONES, 2004JONES, R. A. C. Using epidemiological information to develop effective integrated virus disease management strategies. Virus Research, 2004. v.100, p.5-30. Available from: <Available from: https://linkinghub.elsevier.com/retrieve/pii/S0168170203003770 >. Accessed: Apr. 12, 2020. doi: 10.1016/j.virusres.2003.12.011.
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).

Given the emerging character of PhyRMV and its potential to inflict damage on P. peruviana and other important hosts, it is essential to characterize the genome of a greater number of isolates and to investigate its modes of transmission. Therefore, the aim of this study was to perform a molecular characterization of PhyRMV associated with P. peruviana from a commercial field in the municipality of Lages, Santa Catarina State, Southern Brazil and to evaluate the seed transmission of PhyRMV.

Healthy P. peruviana seedlings were transplanted into 30 vessels (25 liters), each containing a mixture of substrate and soil at a 3:1 ratio, and kept in a greenhouse at 24 °C (±2 °C). Inoculation via buffered plant extract [0.02M sodium phosphate buffer (pH 7.0) plus 0.02M sodium sulfite] occurred 20 days after transplantation. The plants were divided into two treatments: (i) 10 plants inoculated only with buffer and (ii) 20 plants inoculated with PhyRMV. The viral isolate used in this study was collected from P. peruviana in a commercial field in the municipality of Lages (27o48’57”S; 50o19’33”W), and the isolate was kept in P. peruviana in a greenhouse at 24 °C (±2 °C).

For molecular detection of PhyRMV in inoculated plants, 100 mg of symptomatic P. peruviana leaves were homogenized in liquid nitrogen and submitted to total RNA extraction using TRi reagent (Sigma Aldrich), according to the manufacturer’s instructions. For the synthesis of complementary DNA (cDNA), the enzyme RT-MMLV (200 U/µL) (Promega) was used according to the manufacturer’s instructions. PCR was performed using the enzyme goTaq Flexi DNA polymerase (Promega) according to the manufacturer’s instructions, with the specific primers for PhyRMV, Sobemo 1F (5’-TAG CCA AGC TCA ATC CAT TT-3’) and Sobemo 1R (5’-GTC TTA GGC CAA GAA GTC AA-3’) (FARIÑA et al., 2019FARIÑA, A. E. et al. Molecular and biological characterization of a putative new sobemovirus infecting Physalis peruviana. Archives of Virology, 2019. v.164, n.11. Available from: <Available from: https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s00705-019-04374-y >. Accessed: May, 12, 2020. doi: 10.1007/s00705-019-04374-y.
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), with 1 min of annealing at 53 ºC. The PCR products were separated by 1% agarose gel electrophoresis, stained with GelRed (Biotium), visualized under UV light, and photographed.

Double-stranded RNA (dsRNA) extraction was performed from a set of six PhyRMV-infected plants showing typical symptoms of viral infection using 15 g of leaf tissue, following the protocol described by Valverde et al. (1990VALVERDE, R. A. et al. Analysis of double-stranded RNA for plant virus diagnosis. Plant Disease, 1990. v.74, n.3, p.255. Available from: <Available from: https://www.apsnet.org/publications/plantdisease/backissues/Documents/1990Abstracts/PD_74_255.htm >. Accessed: Apr. 12, 2020. doi: 10.1094/PD-74-0255.
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) with minor modifications (VALENTE et al., 2019VALENTE, J. B. et al. A novel putative member of the family Benyviridae is associated with soilborne wheat mosaic disease in Brazil. Plant Pathology, 2019. v.68, n.3, p.588-600. Available from: <Available from: https://bsppjournals.onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1111/ppa.12970?af=R >. Accessed: Apr. 12, 2020. doi: 10.1111/ppa.12970.
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). The dsRNA samples were placed in RNA Stable tubes (Biomatrica) and dried in a Speed Vac (Eppendorf Concentrator Plus) for 1.5 h; the dsRNAs were subjected to quality control and high-throughput sequencing (HTS) performed at Proteimax Biotecnologia Ltda (São Paulo, SP). HTS readings were generated from sequencing libraries generated using TruSeq stranded total RNA with Ribo-zero Plant and the Illumina HiSeq 4000/NovaSeq platform. The quality of the cDNA library was verified with the software FastQC, and the low-quality adapters and readings were removed by Trimmomatic (BOLGER; et al., 2014BOLGER, A. M.; et al. . Trimmomatic: A flexible trimmer for illumina sequence data. Bioinformatics, 2014. v.30, n.15, p.2114-2120. Available from: <Available from: https://academic.oup.com/bioinformatics/article/30/15/2114/2390096 >. Accessed: May, 2020. doi: 10.1093/bioinformatics/btu170.
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). The data obtained by HTS were analyzed using the software SPAdes v.3.11.1 (BANKEVICH et al., 2012BANKEVICH, A. et al. SPAdes: A new genome assembly algorithm and its applications to single-cell sequencing. Journal of Computational Biology, 2012. v.19, n.5, p.455-477. Available from: <Available from: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC3342519/ >. Accessed: Apr. 12, 2020. doi: 10.1089/cmb.2012.0021.
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) for contig assembly. The resulting contigs were analyzed for similarity to public databases, and sequences related to complete viral genomes were identified.

HTS validation was performed using 7 µg of purified dsRNA, which was denatured at 94 °C for 5 minutes followed by synthesis of the cDNA strand using the oligo dT primer and the ImProm II Reverse Transcription System kit, as recommended by the manufacturer. Then, the PCR reaction was performed as previously described. The amplified fragments in the PCR reactions were separated by 1% agarose gel electrophoresis, stained with GelRed (Biotium), visualized under UV light in a transilluminator, and photographed. DNA fragments of the expected size were sent for sequencing (ACTGene Molecular analysis), using the Sobemo 1F and Sobemo 1R primers.

ORF prediction of the contigs was performed using the ORF Finder program in NCBI (http://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/projects/gorf/); identification of conserved and functional domains of proteins was performed using the SMART tool (http: //smart.embl-heidelberg.de/) (LETUNIC et al., 2015LETUNIC, I. et al. SMART: Recent updates, new developments and status in 2015. Nucleic Acids Research, 2015. v.43, p.257-260. Available from: <Available from: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4384020/ >. Accessed: May, 12, 2020. doi: 10.1093/nar/gku949.
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). The phylogenetic tree was built using the maximum likelihood method implemented in the MEGA X program (KUMAR et al., 2018KUMAR, S. et al. MEGA X: Molecular evolutionary genetics analysis across computing platforms. Molecular Biology and Evolution, 2018. v.35, n.6, p.1547-1549. Available from: <Available from: https://academic.oup.com/mbe/article/35/6/1547/4990887 >. Accessed: May, 12, 2020. doi: 10.1093/molbev/msy096.
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). In the phylogenetic analyses, a member of the genus Polemovirus [poinsettia latent virus (PnLV)] was used as outgroup. Polemovirus and Sobemovirus belong to the family Solemoviridae, Order Sobelivirales, Class Pisoniviricetes, Phylum Pisuviricota, Kingdom Orthornavirae, Realm Riboviria.

The nucleotide (nt) and amino acid (aa) identities of the complete genomes and coding regions of the isolate characterized in this study were compared with those of the PhyRMV isolate Piracicaba, using the MUSCLE and Clustal Omega algorithms for nt and aa, respectively (https://www.ebi.ac.uk/Tools/msa/clustalw2/).

For analysis of seed transmission, the presence of the virus in seeds and seedlings was evaluated. To identify virus presence in any part of the seed, six PhyRMV-infected P. peruviana plants supplied six seed samples, each containing 70 mg (⁓70 seeds) of P. peruviana. Each seed sample was homogenized in liquid nitrogen, and the total RNA was extracted, using Tri Reagent (Sigma Aldrich), under manufacturer recommended conditions. After this, the cDNA was synthesized, and a subsequent PCR to detect PhyRMV was performed as previously described.

Subsequently, another experiment was carried out for seed transmission evaluation, in which 300 seeds were sown in trays containing autoclaved substrate, inside an insect-proof cage, to develop at least 200 seedlings (since PhyRMV reduce germination rate) (GORAYEB et al., 2020GORAYEB, E. S. et al. Damage quantification in Physalis peruviana L. infected by the new putative sobemovirus physalis rugose mosaic virus. Tropical Plant Pathology, 2020. Available from: <Available from: https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s40858-020-00354-9 >. Accessed: Jun. 15, 2020. doi: 10.1007/s40858-020-00354-9.
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), that were used in each biological replication (three trials, 600 seedlings in total). After the emergency, the seedlings were checked periodically for the presence of symptoms over 50 days. Subsequently, total RNA was extracted (firstly from pools of 10 plants, followed by a new extraction of each plant separately in the case of a positive reaction), the cDNA was synthesized, and a PCR to detect PhyRMV was performed as previously described.

The original P. peruviana collected in the field, plants used to maintain the viral inoculum, and plants inoculated with PhyRMV used in experiments tested positive by RT-PCR using the specific primers Sobemo 1F and Sobemo 1R (data not shown).

Using HTS, a total of 82,710,494 reads were generated from the analyzed sample. The sample showed a good yield, considering the total number of sequenced bases and total number of readings and presented a CG/AT content within the expected range (49.23%). Additionally, the parameters related to quality (Q20) were higher than 97.9%, indicating HTS of excellent quality. After assembly, 29,364 contigs were generated, with 73 contigs homologous to viral sequences. A detailed analysis of these contigs and comparison with already well-characterized viral species confirmed that they contained the near-complete sequence of the PhyRMV genome, isolate PhyRMV:BR:SC:01:2 from the municipality of Lages, Southern Brazil (GenBank accession number MN782300). To confirm the presence of the PhyRMV in the dsRNA used for HTS, the specific primers Sobemo 1F and Sobemo 1R were used, which target a 528-bp fragment of the RdRp gene (Figure 1B), which shares 100% and 97% nt identity with PhyRMV characterized in this study and the Piracicaba isolate of PhyRMV, respectively.

The genomic sequence of the PhyRMV characterized here consists of 4,162 nts with identical genomic organization to that described for the sobemovirus PhyRMV Piracicaba isolate (FARIÑA et al., 2019FARIÑA, A. E. et al. Molecular and biological characterization of a putative new sobemovirus infecting Physalis peruviana. Archives of Virology, 2019. v.164, n.11. Available from: <Available from: https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s00705-019-04374-y >. Accessed: May, 12, 2020. doi: 10.1007/s00705-019-04374-y.
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). The sequence is composed of four open reading frames (ORF1, ORF2a, ORF2b, and ORF3). The 5 ‘and 3’ untranslated regions (UTRs) have 76 and 59 nts, respectively.

ORF1 (nt 77-529; 150 aa) encodes the putative P1 protein, essential to the systemic movement of the virus and suppression of gene silencing (TRUVE; FARGETTE, 2012TRUVE, E.; FARGETTE, D. Sobemovirus. In: KING, A. M. Q. et al. (Org.). Virus taxonomy: ninth report of the International Committee on Taxonomy of Viruses. 9th. ed. San Diego: Elsevier, 2012, p. 1185-1189. ). ORF2a (nt 548-2317; 589 aa) encodes the putative P2a polyprotein with a typical serine protease motif H(X34)D(X63)TXXGXXGS and the conserved motif WAD, followed by an ED-rich region (TAMM; TRUVE, 2000TAMM, T.; TRUVE, E. Sobemoviruses. Journal of Virology, 2000. v.74, n.14, p.6231-6241. Available from: <Available from: https://jvi.asm.org/content/74/14/6231 >. Accessed: May, 12, 2020. doi: 10.1128/JVI.74.14.6231-6241.2000.
https://jvi.asm.org/content/74/14/6231...
). After self-processing, it produces viral genome-linked protein (VPg) and the proteins P10 and P8. ORF2b (nt 1750-3561; 603 aa) is translated via −1 ribosomal frameshift from ORF2a (MAKINEN et al., 2000MAKINEN, K. et al. Characterization of VPg and the polyprotein processing of cocksfoot mottle virus (genus Sobemovirus). Journal of General Virology, 2000. v.81, n.11, p.2783- 2789. Available from: <Available from: https://www.microbiologyresearch.org/content/journal/jgv/10.1099/0022-1317-81-11-2783 >. Accessed: Jun. 15, 2020. doi: 10.1099/0022-1317-81-11-2783.
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) and produces a protein with an RNA-dependent RNA polymerase domain (RdRp). The RdRp domain contains the conserved motif G(X3)T(X3)N(X19)GDD (KOONIN, 1991KOONIN, E. V. The phylogeny of RNA-dependent RNA polymerases of positive-strand RNA viruses. Journal of General Virology, 1991. v.72, n.9, p.2197-2206. Available from: <Available from: https://www.microbiologyresearch.org/content/journal/jgv/10.1099/0022-1317-72-9-2197#tab2 >. Accessed: Jun. 15, 2020. doi: 10.1099/0022-1317-72-9-2197.
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). ORF3 (nt 3119-4102; 327 aa) overlaps the 3’ region of ORF2b and is translated from a subgenomic RNA (sgRNA), producing the capsid protein. An additional ORF, named ORFx (nt 526-855; 109 aa), overlaps with the 5’ region of ORF2a and is possibly initiated by an atypical initiation codon (AUA) reported at nt position 526 (LING et al., 2013LING, R. et al. An essential fifth coding ORF in the sobemoviruses. Virology, 2013. v.446, n.1-2, p. 397-408. Available from: <Available from: https://www.sciencedirect.com/science/article/pii/S0042682213003140 >. Accessed: Jun. 15, 2020. doi: 10.1016/j.virol.2013.05.033.
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).

The PhyRMV isolate characterized in this study is very similar to the previously characterized PhyRMV Piracicaba isolate (MK681145, 97% nt identity) (FARIÑA et al., 2019FARIÑA, A. E. et al. Molecular and biological characterization of a putative new sobemovirus infecting Physalis peruviana. Archives of Virology, 2019. v.164, n.11. Available from: <Available from: https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s00705-019-04374-y >. Accessed: May, 12, 2020. doi: 10.1007/s00705-019-04374-y.
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). The species demarcation criterion for the genus Sobemovirus is genome sequence identity less than about 75% (TRUVE; FARGETTE, 2012TRUVE, E.; FARGETTE, D. Sobemovirus. In: KING, A. M. Q. et al. (Org.). Virus taxonomy: ninth report of the International Committee on Taxonomy of Viruses. 9th. ed. San Diego: Elsevier, 2012, p. 1185-1189. ), confirming the etiology of the virus characterized in this study. In a comparative analysis of the coding regions of two PhyRMV isolates, the nt and aa identity, respectively, was 96.3% and 97.3% for ORF1, 97.5% and 98.1% for ORF2a, 97.4% and 98.3% for ORF2b, 97% and 98.2% for ORF3, 98.9% and 97.3% for ORFX. Phylogenetic analysis of the near-complete PhyRMV genome and those of other sobemoviruses corroborates the comparative nt and aa data (Figure 1C). The PhyRMV characterized in this study clusters with the PhyRMV Piracicaba isolate and is closely related to solanum nodiflorum mottle virus (SNMoV) and velvet tobacco mottle virus (VTMoV), reported in Australia infecting solanaceous plants (ARTHUR et al., 2010ARTHUR, K. et al. Complete nucleotide sequence of velvet tobacco mottle virus isolate K1. Archives of Virology, 2010. v.155, n.11, p.1893-1896. Available from: <Available from: https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007/s00705-010-0801-2 >. Accessed: Jun. 15, 2020. doi: 10.1007/s00705-010-0801-2.
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; SÕMERA; TRUVE, 2017SÕMERA, M.; TRUVE, E. Complete nucleotide sequence of solanum nodiflorum mottle virus. Archives of Virology, 2017. v.162, n.6, p.1731-1736. Available from: <Available from: https://link.springer.com/article/10.1007%2Fs00705-017-3273-9 >. Accessed: Apr. 12, 2020. doi: 10.1007/s00705-017-3273-9.
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) (Figure 1C).

A comparison of the nt sequence of the two PhyRMV isolates revealed 123 changes throughout the genome, the majority of which are considered synonymous substitutions, which do not involve a change in the aa sequence (Figure 2). However, changes in aa were observed at 31 positions (Figure 2), most of them were observed in replication-associated protein (12 aa changes). All coding regions, except for ORFX, presented a greater number of synonymous substitutions (Figure 2), indicating that these regions are under negative selection. Analysis of other viruses shows that in most instances selection is negative (GARCÍA-ARENAL et al., 2001GARCÍA-ARENAL, F.; et al. Variability and genetic structure of plant virus populations. Annual Review of Phytopathology, 2001. v.39, p.157-186. Available from: <Available from: https://www.annualreviews.org/doi/abs/10.1146/annurev.phyto.39.1.157 >. Accessed: Apr. 12, 2020. doi: 10.1146/annurev.phyto.39.1.157.
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).

Figure 2
Sequences comparisons between genomes of physalis rugose mosaic virus (PhyRMV) Brazilian isolates. Map of nucleotide and amino acid substitutions in PhyRMV genome. Nucleotide and amino acids substitution are indicated following the order: isolated characterized in this study/Piracicaba isolate. Red lines indicate nonsynonymous nucleotide substitutions (dN) and grey lines indicate synonymous nucleotide substitutions (dS). Nucleotide positions are numbered according to sequence of the PhyRMV characterized in this study (MN782300).

When verifying seed transmission of PhyRMV, plants infected with PhyRMV were used to provide seeds for a preliminary trial to detect PhyRMV, in which the virus was detected in one of the six P. peruviana seed samples evaluated (data not shown). In transmission analysis, no symptoms were observed in any of the evaluated seedlings (600), and the molecular analyses confirmed the absence of PhyRMV-infection (Table 1), indicating no evidences of transmission by seeds. The presence of the virus in the seed is not a guarantee of transmission to the seedling, and although molecular analyses indicated the presence of the virus in the seeds, the PhyRMV was not able to reach the seedlings. It is worth mentioning that the transmission assay was performed in triplicate, and the results were congruent (Table 1). Transmission by seeds is reported in 23% of sobemoviruses (SÕMERA et al., 2015SÕMERA, M. et al. Overview on sobemoviruses and a proposal for the creation of the family Sobemoviridae. Viruses, 2015. v.7, n.6, p.3076-3115. Available from: <Available from: https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC4488728/ >. Accessed: Apr. 12, 2020. doi: 10.3390/v7062761.
https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/article...
). Allarangaye et al. (2006ALLARANGAYE, M. D. et al. Evidence of non-transmission of rice yellow mottle virus through seeds of wild host species. Journal of Plant Pathology, 2006. v.88, n.3, p.309-315. Available from: <Available from: https://www.jstor.org/stable/41998336?seq=1 >. Accessed: Jul. 11, 2020. doi: 10.4454/jpp.v88i3.877.
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) reported for the first time the non-transmission of rice yellow mottle virus (RYMV) through seeds of plants of the wild rice species Oryiza barthii and Oryza longistaminata and plants of four wild host species (Dactyloctenium aegyptium, Eragrostis ciliaris, Eragrostis tenella, and Eragrostis tremula). Together, these results indicated that; although, transmission by seeds of sobemoviruses has been reported, it does not constitute a conserved mechanism in the genus, and the results of the present study seems to support those of previous works.

Table 1
Transmission rate of seeds to Physalis peruviana seedlings.

Several factors may be responsible for the virus inability to be transmitted by seeds. Konaté et al. (2001)KONATE, G. et al. Rice yellow mottle virus is seed-borne but not seed transmitted in rice seeds. European Journal of Plant Pathology, 2001. v.107, p.361-364. Available from: <Available from: https://link.springer.com/article/10.1023%2FA%3A1011295709393 >. Accessed: Apr. 12, 2020. doi: 10.1023/A:1011295709393.
https://link.springer.com/article/10.102...
demonstrated that the sobemovirus RYMV is seed-borne but not transmitted by rice seeds and that this inability is due to the inactivation of the virus during seed maturation. The non-transmission of a virus may also be due to the activity of the vascular tissue and the location of the pathogen in the seed (ASSIS FILHO; SHERWOOD, 2000ASSIS FILHO, F. M.; SHERWOOD, J. L. Evaluation of seed transmission of turnip yellow mosaic virus and tobacco mosaic virus in Arabidopsis thaliana. Phytopathology, 2000. v.90, n.11, p.1233-1238. Available from: <Available from: https://apsjournals.apsnet.org/doi/10.1094/PHYTO.2000.90.11.1233 >. Accessed: Jun. 15, 2020. doi: 10.1094/PHYTO.2000.90.11.1233.
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). Additionally, environmental factors such as temperature, the viral isolate, the host, and stage of infection can also influence the ability of the virus to be transmitted via seeds (SASTRY, 2013SASTRY, K. S. Seed-borne plant virus diseases. 1st. ed. New Delhi: Springer India, 2013. ).

Results presented here increase our knowledge regarding the molecular characterization of an emerging viral species, provide the second near-complete genome sequence of PhyRMV, and showed evidences that PhyRMV isolated from southern Brazil is not transmitted by physalis seeds. Future studies should be performed to determine the possibility of PhyRMV transmission by an insect vector, as well as its virus-vector relationship.

ACKNOWLEDGEMENT

This study was supported by Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior (CAPES), Brasil - Finance code 001, Conselho Nacional de Desenvolvimento Científico e Tecnológico (CNPq - 437059/2018-9), and Fundação de Amparo à Pesquisa e Inovação do Estado de Santa Catarina

REFERENCES

  • CR-2020-0702.R1

Publication Dates

  • Publication in this collection
    22 Feb 2021
  • Date of issue
    2021

History

  • Received
    27 July 2020
  • Accepted
    13 Oct 2020
  • Reviewed
    18 Nov 2020
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