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Title: Population Structure of Blueberry Mosaic Associated Virus: Evidence of Genetic Exchange in Geographically Distinct Isolates

Author
item THEKKE-VEETIL, THANUJA - University Of Arkansas
item Polashock, James
item MARN, MOJCA - Agricultural Institute Of Slovenia
item PLESKO, IRENA - Agricultural Institute Of Slovenia
item SCHILDER, ANNEMIEK - Michigan State University
item Keller, Karen
item Martin, Robert
item TZANETAKIS, IOANNIS - University Of Arkansas

Submitted to: Virus Research
Publication Type: Peer Reviewed Journal
Publication Acceptance Date: 12/3/2014
Publication Date: 4/2/2015
Publication URL: http://handle.nal.usda.gov/10113/61511
Citation: Thekke-Veetil, T., Polashock, J.J., Marn, M.V., Plesko, I.M., Schilder, A.C., Keller, K.E., Martin, R.R., Tzanetakis, I.E. 2015. Population Structure of Blueberry Mosaic Associated Virus: Evidence of Genetic Exchange in Geographically Distinct Isolates. Virus Research. 201:79-84.

Interpretive Summary: Blueberry mosaic disease was first described more than 60 years ago and until now the causal agent has been unknown. The disease is widespread and to ensure that reliable diagnostic tests are available, we partially sequenced 59 isolates of Blueberry mosaic associated virus to determine its diversity. The isolates were collected from throughout North America plus several from Europe. The virus showed very low genetic diversity, and diagnostic primers were designed that will detect all of the 59 isolates. Using these new primers based on a broad range of virus isolates gives confidence that the new diagnostic protocol will detect all isolates of this virus and should be used for certification and quarantine purposes.

Technical Abstract: The population structure of blueberry mosaic associated virus (BlMaV), a putative member of the family Ophioviridae, was examined using 59 isolates collected from North America and Slovenia. The studied isolates displayed low genetic diversity in the movement and nucleoprotein regions and low ratios of non-synonymous to synonymous nucleotide substitutions, indicative of strong purifying selection. Phylogenetic analysis revealed grouping based on geography with few variants deviating from this rule. In addition, incongruent clustering of several BlMaV isolates was observed. Further analysis suggested a role of re-assortment in the evolution of the virus.