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ARS Home » Pacific West Area » Corvallis, Oregon » Horticultural Crops Production and Genetic Improvement Research Unit » Research » Publications at this Location » Publication #391723
Research Project: Genetic Improvement of Blackberry, Red and Black Raspberry, Blueberry, and Strawberry

Location: Horticultural Crops Production and Genetic Improvement Research Unit

Title: Genomic characterization of a new potyvirus infecting thevetia ahouai

Author
item CANADA-BAUTISTA, MARIA - Centro De Investigaciones Biotecnologicas Del Ecuador
item REYES-PROANO, EDISON - Centro De Investigaciones Biotecnologicas Del Ecuador
item CORNEJO-FRANCO, FRANCO - Centro De Investigaciones Biotecnologicas Del Ecuador
item ALVAREZ-QUINTO, ROBERT - Oregon State University
item Mollov, Dimitre
item QUITO-AVILA, DIEGO - Centro De Investigaciones Biotecnologicas Del Ecuador

Submitted to: Archives of Virology
Publication Type: Peer Reviewed Journal
Publication Acceptance Date: 3/17/2022
Publication Date: 4/26/2022
Citation: Canada-Bautista, M., Reyes-Proano, E., Cornejo-Franco, F., Alvarez-Quinto, R., Mollov, D.S., Quito-Avila, D. 2022. Genomic characterization of a new potyvirus infecting thevetia ahouai. Archives of Virology. https://doi.org/10.1007/s00705-022-05520-9.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s00705-022-05520-9

Interpretive Summary: Thevetia is an evergreen shrub with pharmaceutical qualities and is used in landscape in the tropics. In this research we identified Thevetia symptomatic plants resembling virus infection. Upon further investigation we discovered that these plants are infected with a previously uncharacterized virus. We performed inoculations from infected to healthy plants and reproduced the appearance of these symptoms, which confirmed that the newly discovered virus is causing the disease appearance of the affected plants. This findings contribute to classification and taxonomy of viruses from scientific point of view and also provide evidence of new and emerging disease of Thevetia. The genome characterization of this new virus will allow us to develop detection methods and suggest control measures of this diseases.

Technical Abstract: The complete genomic sequence of two isolates of a new potyvirus, tentatively named thevetia white spot virus (ThWSV) was determined. The virus was found in Thevetia ahouai L. (Fam. Apocynaceae) plants exhibiting mild white spots on the leaves, black ringspots on the stems, and fruit discoloration. The genome of ThWSV is 9.9 kbp long encoding a putative polyprotein of 363 kDa. Nucleotide sequence identity between the two isolates was 80%; while the identity between ThWSV and its closest relative, a potyvirus detected in an unknown weed from Mexico, was 69% at the nucleotide level, and 71% when the amino acid sequence of the polyprotein was compared.