Characterization of Cestrum yellow leaf curling virus: a new member of the family Caulimoviridae

• Published in: Journal of general virology 2003-12, Vol.84 (12), p.3459-3464
• Main Authors: Stavolone, Livia, Ragozzino, Antonio, Hohn, Thomas
• Format: Article
• Language: English
• Subjects: Amino Acid Sequence; Caulimovirus - classification; Caulimovirus - genetics; Cestrum - virology; Cestrum parqui; Cestrum yellow leaf curling virus; Genome, Viral; Molecular Sequence Data; Open Reading Frames; Plant Diseases - virology; Plant Leaves - virology; Sequence Alignment; Viral Proteins - genetics
• ISSN: 0022-1317; 1465-2099
• DOI: 10.1099/vir.0.19405-0

1 Friedrich Miescher Institute, Basel, Switzerland 2 Università di Napoli, via Università, 80055 Portici (NA), Italy Correspondence Thomas Hohn thomas.hohn{at}fmi.ch Cestrum yellow leaf curling virus (CmYLCV) has been characterized as the aetiological agent of the Cestrum parqui mosaic disease. The virus genome was cloned and the clone was proven to be infectious to C . parqui . The presence of typical viroplasms in virus-infected plant tissue and the information obtained from the complete genomic sequence confirmed CmYLCV as a member of the Caulimoviridae family. All characteristic domains conserved in plant pararetroviruses were found in CmYLCV. Its genome is 8253 bp long and contains seven open reading frames (ORFs). Phylogenetic analysis of the relationships with other members of the Caulimoviridae revealed that CmYLCV is closely related to the Soybean chlorotic mottle virus (SbCMV)-like genus and particularly to SbCMV. However, in contrast to the other members of this genus, the primer-binding site is located in the intercistronic region following ORF Ib rather than within this ORF, and an ORF corresponding to ORF VII is missing. Present address: Istituto di Virologia Vegetale CNR, via Amendola 165/A, 70126 Bari, Italy. Present address: University of Basel, Department of Botany, Plant Health Unit, Schönbeinstr. 6, CH-4056 Basel, Switzerland.