Tatsuji Hataya

Hop Stunt Viroid Strains from Dapple Fruit Disease of Plum and Peach in Japan

Viroids have been isolated from plum trees (Prunus salicina Lindley) affected with plum dapple fruit disease and from peach trees (Prunus persica Batsch) showing dapple fruit symptoms. The viroids were inoculated mechanically to cucurbitaceous plants, in which symptoms typical of hop stunt viroid (HSV) infection appeared. The complete nucleotide sequences of an isolate from plum and an isolate from peach (AF isolate) were shown to be identical, consisting of 297 nucleotides with a 93.6% sequence homology to HSV-hop. Another isolate from peach (A9 isolate) also consists of 297 nucleotides, but the sequence homology to HSV-hop is 99.7%, showing only one nucleotide replacement. These results indicate that these three viroids are strains of HSV, which we designate HSV-plum, HSV-peach (AF) and HSV-peach (A9), respectively. Comparative analysis of the nucleotide sequences of HSV strains from hop, grapevine, citrus, cucumber, plum and peach revealed variable and conserved regions in the HSV molecule. In Japan, these viroids are closely related not only to dapple fruit disease in plum cv. Taiyo, but also to dapple fruit symptoms on peach cv. Asama-Hakutou.

A simple, rapid method of nucleic acid extraction without tissue homogenization for detecting viroids by hybridization and RT-PCR

A simple, rapid method of nucleic acid extraction on a microcentrifuge tube scale for detecting viroids is presented. Five distinct citrus viroids (CVds), chrysanthemum stunt viroid (CSVd), hop stunt viroid (HSVd), hop latent viroid (HLVd) and potato spindle tuber viroid (PSTVd) were detected in their natural host plants by hybridization using cRNA probes and reverse transcription-polymerase chain reaction (RT-PCR). Nucleic acids (NA) were liberated from tissues by incubation in a buffer containing potassium ethyl xanthogenate (PEX) without tissue homogenization, and then precipitated with ethanol (NA-PEX). All the viroids except CVd-IV could be detected clearly in NA-PEX by hybridization. HSVd, HLVd and PSTVd could also be detected in NA-PEX by RT-PCR. Although CVds and CSVd could not be detected in NA-PEX by RT-PCR, they were detected after further purification: differential precipitation with 2-butoxyethanol and HCl treatment followed by ethanol-precipitation. In addition, PCR in the presence of tetramethylammonium chloride specifically amplified the cDNA of all five distinct CVds under the same temperature and cycle conditions. Since all the viroids could be detected in NA liberated by PEX, the amount of NA extracted by the method described here is sufficient for detecting viroids, enabling the processing of a large number of samples.

A PCR-microplate hybridization method for plant virus detection

A sensitive nonradioactive method for detection of plant viruses was evaluated. A cDNA fragment from the coat protein coding region of the potato virus Y (PVY) RNA genome amplified by reverse transcription (RT) followed by polymerase chain reaction (PCR), was directly adsorbed onto polystyrene microplate wells after heat denaturation. The adsorbed cDNA was hybridized with a digoxigenin (DIG)-labelled cDNA probe without a prehybridization step. The probe was also prepared by PCR using the same pair of primers to amplify the target sequence from a cDNA clone of part of the viral genome. The hybrid of the adsorbed cDNA and DIG-labelled probe was reacted with alkaline phosphatase-conjugated anti-DIG antibody. The enzyme activity was then detected by hydrolysis of a substrate, and the absorbance values were measured using a microplate reader. Highest absorbance values were obtained when the amplified DNA fragments were diluted 100 or 125-fold in 10 x SSC (1.5 M NaCl, 0.15 M sodium citrate) for adsorption. Highly concentrated DNA gave lower absorbance values. The absorbance values differed depending on the microplates used, and the highest value was obtained using Nunc Immunoplate II-Maxisorp microplates. DNA fragments longer than 300 bp all gave similar absorbance values, which were twice as high as those obtained with shorter fragments. When the amplified DNA was diluted 100-fold, 10 fg of PVY genomic RNA could be detected by this method, which is called PCR-microplate hybridization. This is about 10,000 times more sensitive than enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay (ELISA). By this method, PVY was detected from five field potato samples showing to be free from PVY by ELISA. PCR-microplate hybridization is nucleic acid-based ELISA-like highly sensitive diagnostic method, and may be generally applicable for detection of plant viruses, viroids, and possibly other plant pathogens.

Molecular characterization of Hop latent virus and phylogenetic relationships among viruses closely related to carlaviruses

Summary. The complete nucleotide sequence of the hop latent virus (HpLV) genome was determined. The viral RNA genome is 8,612 nucleotides long, excluding the poly(A) tail, and contains six open reading frames (ORFs), which encode putative proteins of 224-kDa (ORF 1), 25-kDa (ORF 2), 11-kDa (ORF 3), 7-kDa (ORF 4), 34-kDa (ORF 5), and 12-kDa (ORF 6). ORF 5 encodes the coat protein as demonstrated by N-terminal sequencing of three proteolytic peptides derived from the virus particle. The genome organization of HpLV is similar to that of other species in the genus Carlavirus, and the overall sequence of HpLV is more similar to that of Potato virus M than to sequences of other carlaviruses reported to date. The amino acid sequences of the putative methyltransferase, RNA helicase, and RNA-dependent RNA polymerase encoded in ORF 1 and an ‘accessory’ helicase encoded in ORF 2 of the HpLV genome were compared with those of viruses in the ‘tymo’ lineage: the genera Carlavirus, Potexvirus, Allexivirus, Foveavirus, Trichovirus, Capillovirus, Vitivirus, and Tymovirus. The phylogenetic relationships among the viruses in these genera are discussed. This is the first molecular characterization of a carlavirus infecting hop plants.

A Viroid Resembling Hop Stunt Viroid in Grapevines from Europe, the United States and Japan

SUMMARY A viroid (GV) was isolated from grapevines recently introduced into Japan from France, West Germany, Austria, Hungary and U.S.A., as well as from those cultivated in Japan. It was detected in 28 out of 32 (88 ~o) grapevines tested. The isolates of GV had similar host ranges and induced symptoms in cucumber plants identical to those induced by hop stunt viroid (HSV). The nucleotide sequences of four GV isolates, from France, West Germany, Hungary and Japan, were identical and these formed covalently closed circular molecules 297 nucleotides in length. This sequence differed from that of HSV in one nucleotide only and from that of the cucumber isolate of HSV in being six nucleotides smaller and having 15 nucleotides different (95~o sequence homology). The result indicates that GV is a grapevine isolate of HSV and suggests that grapevines were the source of hop stunt disease in Japan.

Characterization and Strain Identification of a Potato Virus Y Isolate Non-Reactive with Monoclonal Antibodies Specific to the Ordinary and Necrotic Strains

An isolate of potato virus Y, named PVY-36, reacted with polyclonal antibody against PVY-O (an ordinary strain), but not with any of eight monoclonal antibodies (MAbs) specific to PVY-O or with two MAbs specific to PVY-T (a necrotic strain). From its host range and symptomatology, PVY-36 belongs to the PVYO group. The nucleotide sequence of the coat protein (CP) coding region of the PVY-36 genome was determined and the amino acid sequence was predicted. Based on the CP amino acid sequence, PVY-36 is more closely related to PVY-O than to PVY-T. There were eight amino acid differences between the CPs of PVY-36 and PVY-O in the N-terminal 30 amino acids. It is suggested that amino acids 8-15 and/or 26-30 from the N-terminus may determine a PVY-O-specific epitope (or epitopes).

The Complete Nucleotide Sequence and Biotype Variability of Papaya leaf distortion mosaic virus

ABSTRACT The complete nucleotide sequence of the genome of Papaya leaf distortion mosaic virus (PLDMV) was determined. The viral RNA genome of strain LDM (leaf distortion mosaic) comprised 10,153 nucleotides, excluding the poly(A) tail, and contained one long open reading frame encoding a polyprotein of 3,269 amino acids (molecular weight 373,347). The polyprotein contained nine putative proteolytic cleavage sites and some motifs conserved in other potyviral polyproteins with 44 to 50% identities, indicating that PLDMV is a distinct species in the genus Potyvirus. Like the W biotype of Papaya ringspot virus (PRSV), the non-papaya-infecting biotype of PLDMV (PLDMV-C) was found in plants of the family Cucurbitaceae. The coat protein (CP) sequence of PLDMV-C in naturally infected-Trichosanthes bracteata was compared with those of three strains of the P biotype (PLDMV-P), LDM and two additional strains M (mosaic) and YM (yellow mosaic), which are biologically different from each other. The CP sequences of three strains of PLDMV-P share high identities of 95 to 97%, while they share lower identities of 88 to 89% with that of PLDMV-C. Significant changes in hydrophobicity and a deletion of two amino acids at the N-terminal region of the CP of PLDMV-C were observed. The finding of two biotypes of PLDMV implies the possibility that the papaya-infecting biotype evolved from the cucurbitaceae-infecting potyvirus, as has been previously suggested for PRSV. In addition, a similar evolutionary event acquiring infectivity to papaya may arise frequently in viruses in the family Cucurbitaceae.

Molecular characterization of Hop mosaic virus: its serological and molecular relationships to Hop latent virus

Summary. The 3′-terminal sequence of hop mosaic virus (HpMV) genomic RNA was determined. A cDNA of approximately 1.8 kbp was amplified from the HpMV genome by 3′ RACE using a degenerate primer, which was designed to anneal to the overlapping region of open reading frames (ORFs) 2 and 3 of eight carlavirus genomes. The sequence contained three ORFs, encoding proteins of 7-, 34-, and 11-kDa, which corresponded to ORFs 4, 5, and 6 of the carlavirus genome, respectively. The amino acid sequence of ORF 5, encoding the coat protein (CP) of HpMV, shows the highest identity (67%) to that of Hop latent virus (HpLV). The HpMV CP N-terminal sequence differs from that of HpLV, but the central and C-terminal sequences of the CP of both viruses are similar. The sequence similarity possibly causes the cross-reaction of heterologous antibodies of HpMV and HpLV. Phylogenetic analyses based on the CP amino acid and 3′ non-coding region sequences indicate close relationships among HpMV, HpLV, and Potato virus M. We report here the first molecular characterization of HpMV genomic RNA.

Citrus viroid Ia is a derivative of citrus bent leaf viroid (CVd-Ib) by partial sequence duplications in the right terminal region

SummaryNucleotide sequences of group I citrus viroids Ia (CVd-Ia) and citrus bent leaf viroid (CBLVd, formerly designated CVd-Ib) isolated from citrus plants in Japan, the Philippines and China have been determined. Citrus samples in Japan and the Philippines contained CVd-Ia, which consists of 328 nucleotides(nt). Although 10 nt longer than the type CBLVd-225A in Israel they share 94% identity in overall nucleotide sequence. The Philippines sample also contained a 329-nt long CVd-Ia sequence variant, in which one base insertion and three substitutions were observed. A citrus in China contained CBLVd, which consists of 318 nt and shares 98% identity to CBLVd-225A. CVd-Ia was clearly separated from CBLVd by two 5-nt insertions located in upper (5′-AGCUG-3′) and the lower (5′-CUUCU-3′) strand of the right terminal region (which is also designated T2 domain) in rod-like secondary structure. Since both of the additional 5-nt sequences are similar to the adjacent sequences (5′-AGUUG-3′ and 5′-CUUCU-3′), we hypothesize that CVd-Ia is a derivative of CBLVd caused by partial sequence duplications and substitutions taking place in the right terminal region.

Polymerase chain-reaction-mediated cloning and expression of the coat protein gene of potato virus Y inEscherichia coli

Complementary DNAs (cDNAs) to the RNA genome of a necrotic strain of potato virus Y in Japan (Hokkaido Univ. isolate of PVY-T: PVY-TH) were synthesized and cloned into a plasmid pBR322. About 4.3 kbp of the cDNA sequence containing the 3′-poly(A) tract of PVY-TH was inserted into a recombinant plasmid pBRYT88. The coat protein coding region (CP gene) in pBRYT88 was amplified using the polymerase chain reaction (PCR) and subcloned into a plasmid pUC119. The nucleotide sequence of the CP gene was determined from both the PCR-mediated clones and pBRYT88. The CP gene of PVY-TH consisted of 801 nucleotides, corresponding to 267 amino acids of Mr 29,811. The predicted amino acid sequence of the PVY-TH CP gene was different from that of PVYN (1) in only five amino acids and displayed 98.1% sequence homology. This result indicates that PVY-TH is closely related to PVYN (1). The cDNAs of the PVY-TH CP gene containing an additional initiation codon (ATG) at the 5′ end and a stop codon at the 3′ end were constructed by PCR amplication and subcloned into anE. coli expression vector, pKK223-3. Five transformedE. coli colonies expressing the PVY-TH CP were identified by immunoscreening using both polyclonal rabbit antiserum against PVY-TH and mouse monoclonal antibody (MoAb) specific to PVY-T. The CP of PVY-TH produced in theE. coli colonies had an electrophoretic mobility identical to that of native PVY-TH CP and reacted strongly to a specific MoAb to PVY-T, but did not react to a specific MoAb to an ordinary strain of PVY (PVY-O). The maximum expression of the CP inE. coli was apapproximately 7% of the total soluble proteins. The result indicates that the CP gene cloned by PCR was functional and the PCR procedure was useful for producting biologically active cDNA clones from a single, long positive-sense RNA genome encoding a single, large polyprotein precursor, such as potyviruses.