A novel tenuivirus infecting wheat in Brazil.

Since 1948, pale yellow wheat spike have been reported in southern Brazil. This symptom was associated with tenuiviruses due to the observation of cytoplasmic inclusions constituted by a mass of filamentous particles (7-10 nm in diameter) with indeterminate length, identical to those found in "leaf dip" preparations. Such symptoms are still seen in wheat crops; however, there is a lack of information regarding this pathosystem. Decades after the first report, the first sequences of wheat white spike virus were characterized. Wheat plants with symptoms such as pale yellowing, chlorotic streaks, and leaf mosaic were collected in Paraná State, Southern Brazil. High-throughput sequencing was used to determine the nearly complete nucleotide sequence of the viral genome. The genome is composed of five RNAs with a total size of 18,129 nucleotides, with eight open reading frames (ORFs). The virus identified in this study can be included in a new species in the family Phenuiviridae, genus Tenuivirus, and we have tentatively named this virus "wheat white spike virus".

Assessing the Potential Infection of Tagosodes orizicolus (Hemiptera: Delphacidae) by Rice Hoja Blanca Virus in Texas.

Tagosodes orizicolus (Muir) is the most important pest of rice in Latin America. Besides causing direct damage called hopperburn from feeding on and ovipositing in rice leaves, this insect pest also transmits rice hoja blanca virus (RHBV, Family Phenuiviridae, Genus Tenuivirus) in a persistent-propagative manner. This pathosystem can cause up to 100% yield loss in Latin American rice fields. T. orizicolus and RHBV symptoms were detected in Louisiana, Mississippi, and Florida rice fields in the 1950s, 1960s, and 1980s. However, neither has been detected in the United States since. Two outbreaks of T. orizicolus on ratoon rice occurred in the fall of 2015 and 2018 in counties southwest and south of Houston, TX. Insects were collected from ratoon rice fields by sweep net methods. Insects from the 2015 and 2018 outbreaks were tested individually and in pools of 10, respectively, for RHBV infection and the cytochrome oxidase 1 (CO1) gene from Delphacidae. No insects were positive for RHBV, however, all samples yielded amplicons for the CO1 gene. Furthermore, the CO1 gene from five 2015 individuals was sequenced and found to have a 100% identity to the Fer26_Argentina and 99.81% identity to the DEL074 Venezuela isolates of T. orizicolus. Five new sequences from 2015 individuals have now been deposited in GenBank. It is imperative to stay up to date on the potential invasion and establishment of this exotic pest of rice in Texas and other rice-growing regions of the United States through continued monitoring and research.

Conformationally Restricted Peptides from Rice Proteins Elicit Antibodies That Recognize the Corresponding Native Protein in ELISA Assays.

The rice hoja blanca virus (RHBV), transmitted by the planthopper insect Tagosodes orizicolus, is a disease that attacks rice and generates significant production losses in Colombia. Fedearroz 2000 and Colombia I commercial rice varieties, which have different resistance levels to the disease, were selected in this study. To identify proteins associated to the insect and virus signaling, a comparative proteomics study was performed. By comparing proteomic profiles, between virus-infected and control group plants in two-dimensional electrophoresis, proteins exhibiting significant changes in abundance were found. In another test, peptide dendrimers containing sequences conformationally restricted to α-helix from four of those rice proteins were synthesized. In the experiment, sera from mice inoculated with peptide dendrimers could recognize the corresponding native protein in ELISA assays. Reported comparative proteomic results provide new insights into the molecular mechanisms of plant response to the RHBV and comprehensive tools for the analysis of new crop varieties. Besides, results from conformational peptide dendrimer approach are promising and show that it is feasible to detect proteins as markers, and may have biological applications by decreasing the susceptibility to proteolytic degradation.

Nonstructural protein NS4 of Rice Stripe Virus plays a critical role in viral spread in the body of vector insects.

Rice stripe virus (RSV), a tenuivirus, is transmitted by small brown planthopper (SBPH) in a persistent-propagative manner. In this study, sequential infection of RSV in the internal organs of SBPH after ingestion of virus indicated that RSV initially infected the midgut epithelium, and then progressed to the visceral muscle tissues, through which RSV spread to the entire alimentary canal. Finally, RSV spread into the salivary glands and reproductive system. During viral infection, the nonstructural protein NS4 of RSV formed cytoplasmic inclusions in various tissues of viruliferous SBPH. We demonstrated that the ribonucleoprotein particles of RSV were closely associated with NS4-specific inclusions in the body of viruliferous SBPH through a direct interaction between NS4 and nucleoprotein of RSV. Moreover, the knockdown of NS4 expression due to RNA interference induced by dsRNA from NS4 gene significantly prevented the spread of RSV in the bodies of SBPHs without a significant effect on viral replication in continuous cell culture derived from SBPH. All these results suggest that the nonstructural protein NS4 of RSV plays a critical role in viral spread by the vector insects.

Concentración mínima inhibitoria de higromicina B en callos embriogénicos de arroz -Oryza sativa L / Minimum inhibitory concentration of higromycin B in rice embryogenic calli -Oryza sativa L

Uno de los elementos imprescindibles en la ingeniería genética de plantas es un sistema de selección eficiente. El propósito de este trabajo fue evaluar la sensibilidad al marcador de selección higromicina B, de callos embriogénicos obtenidos a partir del escutelo de semilla de tres variedades colombianas de arroz (FEDEARROZ 2000, FEDEARROZ 50 y FEDEARROZ 369). Además, se validó la respuesta de estas variedades al protocolo de regeneración empleado. Se probaron cuatro concentraciones del antibiótico (25 mg/L, 50 mg/L, 75 mg/L y 100 mg/L) más un control sin higromicina B. Los resultados obtenidos mostraron que una concentración de 50 mg/L de antibiótico en el medio de regeneración es adecuada para la selección. Con esta concentración se impide la formación de brotes, aunque los callos no mueren completamente. Por otra parte, se estableció que el protocolo de regeneración utilizado es de baja eficiencia y, por consiguiente, es necesario optimizarlo para poder usarlo en procesos de ingeniería genética de cultivares colombianos de arroz.

An efficient selection system is one of the most important elements of plant genetic engineering. The purpose of this study was to evaluate the sensitivity of scutellum-derived embriogenic calli obtained from three colombian rice varieties (FEDEARROZ 2000, FEDEARROZ 50 and FEDEARROZ 369), to the selection marker hygromycin B. Aditionally, the response of these varieties to the regeneration protocol was measured. Four antibiotic concentrations were tested (25 mg/L, 50 mg/L, 75 mg/L and 100 mg/L) plus one control without hygromycin B. The results show that 50 mg/L of antibiotic in the regeneration medium is adequate for selection. This concentration prevents the formation of shoots, though the calli do not die. It was also established that the regeneration protocol is a low-efficiency system and it needs to be improved, in order to use it for colombian rice genetic engineering.

Identification of a Rice stripe necrosis virus resistance locus and yield component QTLs using Oryza sativa x O. glaberrima introgression lines.

BACKGROUND: Developing new population types based on interspecific introgressions has been suggested by several authors to facilitate the discovery of novel allelic sources for traits of agronomic importance. Chromosome segment substitution lines from interspecific crosses represent a powerful and useful genetic resource for QTL detection and breeding programs. RESULTS: We built a set of 64 chromosome segment substitution lines carrying contiguous chromosomal segments of African rice Oryza glaberrima MG12 (acc. IRGC103544) in the genetic background of Oryza sativa ssp. tropical japonica (cv. Caiapó). Well-distributed simple-sequence repeats markers were used to characterize the introgression events. Average size of the substituted chromosomal segments in the substitution lines was about 10 cM and covered the whole donor genome, except for small regions on chromosome 2 and 4. Proportions of recurrent and donor genome in the substitution lines were 87.59% and 7.64%, respectively. The remaining 4.78% corresponded to heterozygotes and missing data. Strong segregation distortion was found on chromosomes 3 and 6, indicating the presence of interspecific sterility genes. To illustrate the advantages and the power of quantitative trait loci (QTL) detection using substitution lines, a QTL detection was performed for scored traits. Transgressive segregation was observed for several traits measured in the population. Fourteen QTLs for plant height, tiller number per plant, panicle length, sterility percentage, 1000-grain weight and grain yield were located on chromosomes 1, 3, 4, 6 and 9. Furthermore, a highly significant QTL controlling resistance to the Rice stripe necrosis virus was located between SSR markers RM202-RM26406 (44.5-44.8 cM) on chromosome 11. CONCLUSIONS: Development and phenotyping of CSSL libraries with entire genome coverage represents a useful strategy for QTL discovery. Mapping of the RSNV locus represents the first identification of a genetic factor underlying resistance to this virus. This population is a powerful breeding tool. It also helps in overcoming hybrid sterility barriers between species of rice.

Expression of the rice hoja blanca virus (RHBV) non-structural protein 3 (NS3) in Escherichia coli and its in situ localization in RHBV-infected rice tissues

The non-structural NS3 protein gene from the rice hoja blanca virus (RHBV) was fused to the glutathione-S-transferase carboxilic end and expressed in Escherichia coli strain JM83. Large quantities of fusion protein were produced in insoluble form. The fusion protein was fractionated in SDS-PAGE and purified by electroelution, polyclonal antibodies were raised in rabbit and the antiserum was absorbed with bacterial crude extract. A band of similar size as that of NS3 protein was observed in Western blots using extracts from RHBV-infected rice plants. Immunoelectron microscopy with colloidal gold-labeled antibodies against NS3 protein and the viral nucleocapsid protein revealed in situ accumulation of NS3 protein in the cytoplasm but not in the viral inclusion bodies, vacuoles or chloroplasts of RHBV-infected plants, following the same pattern of distribution as the RHBV nucleocapsid protein.

Expression of the rice hoja blanca virus (RHBV) non-structural protein 3 (NS3) in Escherichia coli and its in situ localization in RHBV-infected rice tissues.

The non-structural NS3 protein gene from the rice hoja blanca virus (RHBV) was fused to the glutathione-S-transferase carboxilic end and expressed in Escherichia coli strain JM83. Large quantities of fusion protein were produced in insoluble form. The fusion protein was fractionated in SDS-PAGE and purified by electroelution, polyclonal antibodies were raised in rabbit and the antiserum was absorbed with bacterial crude extract. A band of similar size as that of NS3 protein was observed in Western blots using extracts from RHBV-infected rice plants. Immunoelectron microscopy with colloidal gold-labeled antibodies against NS3 protein and the viral nucleocapsid protein revealed in situ accumulation of NS3 protein in the cytoplasm but not in the viral inclusion bodies, vacuoles or chloroplasts of RHBV-infected plants, following the same pattern of distribution as the RHBV nucleocapsid protein.