Repeated loss of the ability of a wild pepper disease resistance gene to function at high temperatures suggests that thermoresistance is a costly trait.

Specificity in plant-pathogen gene-for-gene (GFG) interactions is determined by the recognition of pathogen proteins by the products of plant resistance (R) genes. The evolutionary dynamics of R genes in plant-virus systems is poorly understood. We analyse the evolution of the L resistance locus to tobamoviruses in the wild pepper Capsicum annuum var. glabriusculum (chiltepin), a crop relative undergoing incipient domestication. The frequency, and the genetic and phenotypic diversity, of the L locus was analysed in 41 chiltepin populations under different levels of human management over its distribution range in Mexico. The frequency of resistance was lower in Cultivated than in Wild populations. L-locus genetic diversity showed a strong spatial structure with no isolation-by-distance pattern, suggesting environment-specific selection, possibly associated with infection by the highly virulent tobamoviruses found in the surveyed regions. L alleles differed in recognition specificity and in the expression of resistance at different temperatures, broad-spectrum recognition of P0 + P1 pathotypes and expression above 32°C being ancestral traits that were repeatedly lost along L-locus evolution. Overall, loss of resistance co-occurs with incipient domestication and broad-spectrum resistance expressed at high temperatures has apparent fitness costs. These findings contribute to understand the role of fitness trade-offs in plant-virus coevolution.

Dengue virus NS5 degrades ERC1 during infection to antagonize NF-kB activation.

Dengue virus (DENV) is the most important human virus transmitted by mosquitos. Dengue pathogenesis is characterized by a large induction of proinflammatory cytokines. This cytokine induction varies among the four DENV serotypes (DENV1 to 4) and poses a challenge for live DENV vaccine design. Here, we identify a viral mechanism to limit NF-κB activation and cytokine secretion by the DENV protein NS5. Using proteomics, we found that NS5 binds and degrades the host protein ERC1 to antagonize NF-κB activation, limit proinflammatory cytokine secretion, and reduce cell migration. We found that ERC1 degradation involves unique properties of the methyltransferase domain of NS5 that are not conserved among the four DENV serotypes. By obtaining chimeric DENV2 and DENV4 viruses, we map the residues in NS5 for ERC1 degradation, and generate recombinant DENVs exchanging serotype properties by single amino acid substitutions. This work uncovers a function of the viral protein NS5 to limit cytokine production, critical to dengue pathogenesis. Importantly, the information provided about the serotype-specific mechanism for counteracting the antiviral response can be applied to improve live attenuated vaccines.

The Role of Plant Latex in Virus Biology.

At least 20,000 plant species produce latex, a capacity that appears to have evolved independently on numerous occasions. With a few exceptions, latex is stored under pressure in specialized cells known as laticifers and is exuded upon injury, leading to the assumption that it has a role in securing the plant after mechanical injury. In addition, a defensive effect against insect herbivores and fungal infections has been well established. Latex also appears to have effects on viruses, and laticifers are a hostile environment for virus colonization. Only one example of successful colonization has been reported: papaya meleira virus (PMeV) and papaya meleira virus 2 (PMeV2) in Carica papaya. In this review, a summary of studies that support both the pro- and anti-viral effects of plant latex compounds is provided. The latex components represent a promising natural source for the discovery of new pro- and anti-viral molecules in the fields of agriculture and medicine.

The Virus-Host Interplay in Junín Mammarenavirus Infection.

Junín virus (JUNV) belongs to the Arenaviridae family and is the causative agent of Argentine hemorrhagic fever (AHF), a severe human disease endemic to agricultural areas in Argentina. At this moment, there are no effective antiviral therapeutics to battle pathogenic arenaviruses. Cumulative reports from recent years have widely provided information on cellular factors playing key roles during JUNV infection. In this review, we summarize research on host molecular determinants that intervene in the different stages of the viral life cycle: viral entry, replication, assembly and budding. Alongside, we describe JUNV tight interplay with the innate immune system. We also review the development of different reverse genetics systems and their use as tools to study JUNV biology and its close teamwork with the host. Elucidating relevant interactions of the virus with the host cell machinery is highly necessary to better understand the mechanistic basis beyond virus multiplication, disease pathogenesis and viral subversion of the immune response. Altogether, this knowledge becomes essential for identifying potential targets for the rational design of novel antiviral treatments to combat JUNV as well as other pathogenic arenaviruses.

Nucleopolyhedrovirus Coocclusion Technology: A New Concept in the Development of Biological Insecticides.

Nucleopolyhedroviruses (NPV, Baculoviridae) that infect lepidopteran pests have an established record as safe and effective biological insecticides. Here, we describe a new approach for the development of NPV-based insecticides. This technology takes advantage of the unique way in which these viruses are transmitted as collective infectious units, and the genotypic diversity present in natural virus populations. A ten-step procedure is described involving genotypic variant selection, mixing, coinfection and intraspecific coocclusion of variants within viral occlusion bodies. Using two examples, we demonstrate how this approach can be used to produce highly pathogenic virus preparations for pest control. As restricted host range limits the uptake of NPV-based insecticides, this technology has recently been adapted to produce custom-designed interspecific mixtures of viruses that can be applied to control complexes of lepidopteran pests on particular crops, as long as a shared host species is available for virus production. This approach to the development of NPV-based insecticides has the potential to be applied across a broad range of NPV-pest pathosystems.

Plataformas de secuenciación de nueva generación y proteómica aplicadas a la virología vegetal: ¿Cómo ha avanzado Colombia? / Next generation sequencing and proteomics in plant virology: how is colombia doing?

ABSTRACT Crop production and trade are two of the most economically important activities in Colombia, and viral diseases cause a high negative impact to agricultural sector. Therefore, the detection, diagnosis, control, and management of viral diseases are crucial. Currently, Next-Generation Sequencing (NGS) and 'Omic' technologies constitute a right-hand tool for the discovery of novel viruses and for studying virus-plant interactions. This knowledge allows the development of new viral diagnostic methods and the discovery of key components of infectious processes, which could be used to generate plants resistant to viral infections. Globally, crop sciences are advancing in this direction. In this review, advancements in 'omic' technologies and their different applications in plant virology in Colombia are discussed. In addition, bioinformatics pipelines and resources for omics data analyses are presented. Due to their decreasing prices, NGS technologies are becoming an affordable and promising means to explore many phytopathologies affecting a wide variety of Colombian crops so as to improve their trade potential.

RESUMEN La producción y el comercio de cultivos es una de las actividades económicas más importantes para el país. Las enfermedades causadas por virus ocasionan graves pérdidas económicas en el sector, por lo tanto, la detección, diagnóstico y diseño de estrategias para su control y manejo es crucial. Las tecnologías de secuenciación masiva (NGS por sus siglas en ingles) y las ciencias Ómicas constituyen hoy, una herramienta para el descubrimiento de nuevos virus y para el estudio de la interacción entre los virus y su hospedero vegetal. Este conocimiento no solo permite el desarrollo de nuevos métodos de diagnóstico, sino también permite el descubrimiento de componentes claves en la infección, los cuales podrían usarse para obtener plantas resistentes a los virus. En el mundo, el manejo de cultivos se está trabajando con ese enfoque. Por lo tanto, en esta revisión se presentan las diferentes aplicaciones de las tecnologías ómicas en la virología de plantas y el avance que ha alcanzado Colombia. Adicionalmente, se muestran los diferentes recursos y programas usados para el análisis bioinformático de datos ómicos. Debido a su costo cada vez más reducido, las tecnologías NGS son una excelente oportunidad para explorar fitopatologías en una gran diversidad de productos agrícolas y para mejorar su potencial comercial.

Hemorrhagic Fever-Causing Arenaviruses: Lethal Pathogens and Potent Immune Suppressors.

Hemorrhagic fevers (HF) resulting from pathogenic arenaviral infections have traditionally been neglected as tropical diseases primarily affecting African and South American regions. There are currently no FDA-approved vaccines for arenaviruses, and treatments have been limited to supportive therapy and use of non-specific nucleoside analogs, such as Ribavirin. Outbreaks of arenaviral infections have been limited to certain geographic areas that are endemic but known cases of exportation of arenaviruses from endemic regions and socioeconomic challenges for local control of rodent reservoirs raise serious concerns about the potential for larger outbreaks in the future. This review synthesizes current knowledge about arenaviral evolution, ecology, transmission patterns, life cycle, modulation of host immunity, disease pathogenesis, as well as discusses recent development of preventative and therapeutic pursuits against this group of deadly viral pathogens.

The receptor-like kinase SlSOBIR1 is differentially modulated by virus infection but its overexpression in tobacco has no significant impact on virus accumulation.

KEY MESSAGE: The role of the tomato receptor-like kinase SlSOBIR1 in antiviral defense was investigated. SlSOBIR1 was transcriptionally modulated by unrelated viruses but its ectopic expression had no effect on virus accumulation. Leucine-rich repeat receptor-like kinases (LRR-RLK) constitute a diverse group of proteins allowing the cell to recognize and respond to the extracellular environment. In the present study we focused on a gene encoding a tomato LRR-RLK (named SlSOBIR1) involved in the host defense against fungal pathogens. Curiously, SlSOBIR1 has been previously reported to be down-regulated by Pepper yellow mosaic virus (PepYMV) infection. Here, we show that SlSOBIR1 is responsive to wounding and differentially modulated by unrelated virus infection, i.e., down-regulated by PepYMV and up-regulated by Tomato chlorotic spot virus (TCSV). Despite these divergent expression profiles, SlSOBIR1 overexpression in transgenic tobacco plants had no evident effect on TCSV and PepYMV accumulation. On the other hand, overexpression of SlSOBIR1 significantly increased the expression of selected defense genes (PR-1a and PR-6) and exacerbated superoxide production in wounded leaves. Our data indicate that the observed modulation of SlSOBIR1 expression is probably triggered by secondary effects of the virus infection process and suggest that SlSOBIR1 is not directly involved in antiviral signaling response.

The effect of ecosystem biodiversity on virus genetic diversity depends on virus species: A study of chiltepin-infecting begomoviruses in Mexico.

Current declines in biodiversity put at risk ecosystem services that are fundamental for human welfare. Increasing evidence indicates that one such service is the ability to reduce virus emergence. It has been proposed that the reduction of virus emergence occurs at two levels: through a reduction of virus prevalence/transmission and, as a result of these epidemiological changes, through a limitation of virus genetic diversity. Although the former mechanism has been studied in a few host-virus interactions, very little is known about the association between ecosystem biodiversity and virus genetic diversity. To address this subject, we estimated genetic diversity, synonymous and non-synonymous nucleotide substitution rates, selection pressures, and frequency of recombinants and re-assortants in populations of Pepper golden mosaic virus (PepGMV) and Pepper huasteco yellow vein virus (PHYVV) that infect chiltepin plants in Mexico. We then analyzed how these parameters varied according to the level of habitat anthropization, which is the major cause of biodiversity loss. Our results indicated that genetic diversity of PepGMV (but not of PHYVV) populations increased with the loss of biodiversity at higher levels of habitat anthropization. This was mostly the consequence of higher rates of synonymous nucleotide substitutions, rather than of adaptive selection. The frequency of recombinants and re-assortants was higher in PepGMV populations infecting wild chiltepin than in those infecting cultivated ones, suggesting that genetic exchange is not the main mechanism for generating genetic diversity in PepGMV populations. These findings provide evidence that biodiversity may modulate the genetic diversity of plant viruses, but it may differentially affect even two closely related viruses. Our analyses may contribute to understanding the factors involved in virus emergence.

Sweetpotato Virus Disease (SPVD): Distribution, Incidence, and Effect on Sweetpotato Yield in Peru.

Sweetpotato virus disease (SPVD), the most important disease affecting sweetpotato (Ipomoea batatas (L.) Lam), is caused by the synergistic interaction of the aphid-transmitted Sweetpotato feathery mottle virus (SPFMV) and whitefly-transmitted Sweetpotato chlorotic stunt virus (SPCSV). In this study, SPVD was the main disease in the Cañete Valley, the major sweetpotato-producing area in Peru. Studies on virus incidence showed that SPCSV and SPFMV were the most frequently identified viruses in Cañete Valley. Symptoms of different severity were associated with isolates of both viruses involved in the SPVD. Over 80% of plants infected with both SPFMV and SPCSV showed the symptoms (leaf reduction and deformation, vein clearing or mosaic, and stunting) typically attributed to SPVD elsewhere. SPFMV did not significantly affect the yield of the sweetpotato cultivars Jonathan and Costanero, but infection of these cultivars by SPCSV was associated with significant yield reduction. Double infection by the two viruses resulted in SPVD and greater yield reduction than for either alone. These results demonstrate that SPFMV and SPCSV interact synergistically and that the severity of SPVD symptoms also depends on the particular isolate of each virus.

Etiology of Sweet Potato Chlorotic Dwarf Disease in Argentina.

Chlorotic dwarf (CD), the most important disease in the sweet potato-producing regions of Argentina, is caused by the synergistic combination of two aphid-transmitted potyviruses with a whitefly-transmitted crinivirus. Sweet potato feathery mottle virus, sweet potato mild speckling virus, and a crinivirus (serologically related to sweet potato chlorotic stunt virus) were associated with CD. The synergistic combination of these three viruses reproduced the disease.