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ARS Home » Northeast Area » Beltsville, Maryland (BARC) » Beltsville Agricultural Research Center » National Germplasm Resources Laboratory » Research » Publications at this Location » Publication #375948
Research Project: Characterizing and Detecting Pathogens to Ensure Safe Exchange of Plant Germplasm

Location: National Germplasm Resources Laboratory

Title: Identification and characterization of Miscanthus yellow fleck virus, a new polerovirus infecting Miscanthus sinensis

Author
item Bolus, Stephen
item MALAPI-WIGHT, MARTHA - Animal And Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS)
item Grinstead, Sam
item Fuentes-Bueno, Irazema
item HENDRICKSON, LETICIA - Animal And Plant Health Inspection Service (APHIS)
item Hammond, Rosemarie
item Mollov, Dimitre

Submitted to: PLOS ONE
Publication Type: Peer Reviewed Journal
Publication Acceptance Date: 9/7/2020
Publication Date: 9/17/2020
Citation: Bolus, S.J., Malapi-Wight, M., Grinstead, S.C., Fuentes-Bueno, I., Hendrickson, L., Hammond, R., Mollov, D.S. 2020. Identification and characterization of Miscanthus yellow fleck virus, a new polerovirus infecting Miscanthus sinensis. PLoS ONE. https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0239199.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1371/journal.pone.0239199

Interpretive Summary: Silver grass (Miscanthus sinensis) is used as bioenergy crop and is known to have resistance to certain diseases that affect sugarcane. Genetic crosses between Silver grass and sugarcane are being investigated to enhance sugarcane varieties for cold hardiness and pathogen resistance. In this report, we identified a new virus infecting silver grass. This new virus is closely related to sugarcane yellow leaf virus, a pathogen with economic impact on sugarcane production. Further investigation is needed to determine if this new virus can infect sugarcane. Such information may influence decisions about the usefulness of silver grass as a source for resistance introgression into sugarcane breeding.

Technical Abstract: Miscanthus sinensis is a grass used for sugarcane breeding and bioenergy production. Using high throughput sequencing technologies, we identified a new viral genome in infected M. sinensis leaf tissue displaying yellow fleck symptoms. This virus is most related to members of the genus Polerovirus in the family Luteoviridae. The canonical ORFs were computationally identified, the P3 coat protein was expressed, and virus-like particles were purified and found to conform to icosahedral shapes, characteristic of the family Luteoviridae. We propose the name Miscanthus yellow fleck virus for this new virus.