Research Objectives

• Map genetic determinants of differential host range among strains of WSMV.
• Map determinants of mite transmission encoded by the WSMV HC-Pro gene.
• Determine the function of a conserved sequence element in the WSMV P3 gene.
• Define patterns of nucleotide sequence diversity within a collection of WSMV isolates and determine evolutionary forces affecting diversity in WSMV.
• Determine the frequency of intermolecular homologous recombination among closely related genotypes of WSMV in the absence of strong selection.