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ARS Home » Pacific West Area » Corvallis, Oregon » Horticultural Crops Research Unit » Research » Publications at this Location » Publication #216534

Title: A Member of a New Genus in the Potyviridae Infects Rubus

Author
item SUSAIMUTHU, JAMES - CORNELL UNIVERSITY
item TZANETAKIS, IOANNIS - OREGON STATE UNIVERSITY
item GERGERICH, ROSE - UNIVERSITY OF ARKANSAS
item Martin, Robert

Submitted to: Virus Research
Publication Type: Peer Reviewed Journal
Publication Acceptance Date: 8/30/2007
Publication Date: 9/1/2007
Citation: Susaimuthu, J., Tzanetakis, I.E., Gergerich, R., Martin, R.R. 2007. A member of a new genus in the Potyviridae infects rubus. Virus Research. 131:145-151.

Interpretive Summary: Blackberry yellow vein disease causes devastating symptoms and losses in blackberry in the southeastern United States. Five viruses have been isolated from blackberries that exhibit the yellow vein disease. One virus, Blackberry yellow vein associated virus, has been found in all symptomatic plants. A second virus, Blackberry virus Y (BVY), has been found in most symptomatic plants in Arkansas but has not been identified in symptomatic plants from North or South Carolina. Blackberry virus Y is a member of the Potyviridae family of plant viruses and produces typical pinwheel inclusions. Most potyviruses are transmitted by aphids, but BVY was not aphid-transmitted by either the large raspberry aphid or the green peach aphid. Once the full sequence was obtained and examined, it was realized that the amino acid triplet required for aphid transmission of potyviruses was absent in BVY. Further characterization of the BVY sequence revealed that it did not cluster with any of the virus genera in the family Potyviridae and it may represent a new genus in the family. Blackberry virus Y is also the first member of the family to contain an AlkB domain, which also suggests it is a novel member of the family. Studies to identify the vector of this virus are continuing so that appropriate control strategies can be developed.

Technical Abstract: Blackberry yellow vein disease causes devastating symptoms and losses in blackberry in the southeastern United States. Blackberry yellow vein associated virus (BYVaV) was identified as the putative causal agent of the disease, but the identification of latent infections of BYVaV led to the investigation of additional agents being involved in symptomatology. A potyvirus has been identified in plants with blackberry yellow vein disease symptoms that were also infected with BYVaV. The genomic sequence of Blackberry virus Y (BVY) revealed that it is the largest potyvirus sequenced to date and the first to encode an AlkB domain. The virus has minimal sequence similarities with known members of the family and should be considered a member of a novel genus in the Potyviridae. The relationship of BVY with Bramble yellow mosaic virus, the only other potyvirus known to infect Rubus, was investigated. Transmission trials with aphid and eriophyid mites commonly found on blackberry yellow vein diseased plants failed to identify a vector. The presence of the virus was verified in several blackberry plants, but it is not the causal agent of blackberry yellow vein disease since several symptomatic plants were not infected with the virus and BVY was also detected in asymptomatic plants.