NEW BNYVV P25 VARIANTS IN BELGIUM.

Rhizomania is a widespread viral plant disease of major importance in sugar beet cropping and breeding. It is caused by the Beet necrotic yellow vein virus (BNYVV), a Benyvirus transmitted by the soil inhabiting plasmodiophorid Polymyxa betae. This vector also transmits other sugar beet virus such as Beet virus Q (BVQ) and Beet soil-borne virus (BSBV). Despite identification of resistance genes, BNYVV remains a major constraint because of resistance-breaking events as well as its ability to survive for long periods in soils in resting spores of P. betae. During the 2014 growing season, severe rhizomania symptoms were detected in Rz1 resistant beet genotypes in ten Belgian fields suggesting resistance-breaking events. Plants from these fields were sampled and total RNA was extracted from root hairs. The presence of BNYVV, BSBV, BVQ and P. betae was assessed by multiplex RT-PCR. Samples were then tested for the presence of BNYVV RNA5 and RNA3 by RT-PCR respectively targeting P26 and P25 genes. PCR products from P25 gene were then purified and sequenced. The results confirmed the presence of P. betae, BSBV and BVQ in all samples. BNYVV was detected in nine fields. Sequencing of P25 partial cDNA sequences revealed the presence of BNYVV types A and B. Two isolates possessed the amino acids motifs AYPR in the so-called tetrad region aa67-70. This motif was previously associated with resistance-breaking events. The Belgian situation will be discussed in the light of the current situation in neighbouring countries.

Arabidopsis thaliana, a new tool to investigate Polymyxa betae-host interactions.

Little is known about the genome of Polymyxa betae and its interactions with sugar beet, due partly to the obligate nature of the protist and the patents on Beta vulgaris sequences. The identification of an ecotype of Arabidopsis thaliana compatible with the protist would help to improve this knowledge. The infection and development of P. betae in 14 worldwide ecotypes of A. thaliana were studied. The detection of plasmodia and resting spores and the production of zoospores in the roots of A. thaliana were obtained in three bioassays, using automatic immersion systems and individual glass tubes. Detection was done using molecular detection and microscopy. Compatible interactions were established between 13 A. thaliana ecotypes of the 14 that were tested and the monosporosoric Belgian strain of P. betae, A26-41. The ecotype Cvi-0 (N1096), from the Cape Verde Islands, was the most compatible with the protist. This ecotype is also susceptible to Plasmodiophora brassicae, another plasmodiophorid. Polymyxa betae infection in A. thaliana was relatively very low compared with B. vulgaris, but every stage of the life cycle of the protist was present. The spore-forming phase was promoted at the expense of the sporangial phase, probably caused by the stress of this new environment. In addition, the protist revealed a new phenotype. This new model study will allow molecular tools available for A. thaliana to be used in order to gain a better understanding of the P. betae-plant interaction during the spore-forming phase.