Papaya Ringspot Virus Isolates From Papaya in Bangladesh: Detection, Characterization, and Distribution

Papaya ringspot virus (PRSV) is the major constraint to papaya (Carica papaya) production in Bangladesh. Disease symptoms occurred in 90 to 100% of the plants surveyed. Full-length genomes of PRSV strains from severely infected papaya plants were determined using the Illumina NextSeq 500 platform, followed by Sanger DNA sequencing of viral genomes obtained by reverse-transcription PCR(RT-PCR). The genome sequences of two distinct PRSV strains, PRSV BD-1 (10,300 bp) and PRSV BD-2 (10,325 bp) were 74 and 83% identical to each other, respectively, at the nucleotide and amino acid levels. PRSV BD-1 and PRSV BD-2 were 74 to 75% and 79 to 88% identical, respectively, to other full-length PRSV sequences at the nucleotide level. Based on phylogenetic analysis, PRSV BD-2 was most closely related to PRSV-Meghalaya (MF356497) from papaya in India. PRSV BD-1 formed a branch distinct from the other PRSV sequences based on nucleotide and amino acid sequence comparisons. Comparisons of the genome sequences of these two strains with other sequenced PRSV genomes indicated two putative recombination events in PRSV BD-2. One recombinant event contained a 2,766-nucleotide fragment highly identical to PRSV-Meghalaya (MF356497). The other recombinant event contained a 5,105-nucleotide fragment highly identical to PRSV-China (KY933061). The occurrence rates of PRSV BD-1 and PRSV BD-2 in the sampled areas of Bangladesh were approximately 19 and 69%, respectively. Plants infected with both strains (11%) exhibited more severe symptoms than plants infected with either strain alone. The full-length genome sequences of these new PRSV strains and their distribution provide important information regarding the dynamics of papaya ringspot virus infections in papaya in Bangladesh.

Genome Sequences of a Novel Recombinant Duck Circovirus in China

In this study, YN26/2013, a novel recombinant duck circovirus (DuCV), was isolated from a Muscovy duck in Yunnan Province, southern China. The whole genome of YN26/2013 consists of 1,987 nucleotides (nt), the same genomic size as that of the DuCV-2 genotype. However, YN26/2013 shares 91.5 to 94.3% nucleotide identity similarity with previously reported type I (DuCV-1) viruses. Importantly, a novel putative recombinant event between DuCV-1 and DuCV-2 was identified as occurring within the 987- to 1111-nt region of the YN26/2013 genome.

Genome Sequence Analysis of New Isolates of the Winona Strain of Plum pox virus and the First Definitive Evidence of Intrastrain Recombination Events

Plum pox virus (PPV) is genetically diverse with nine different strains identified. Mutations, indel events, and interstrain recombination events are known to contribute to the genetic diversity of PPV. This is the first report of intrastrain recombination events that contribute to PPV’s genetic diversity. Fourteen isolates of the PPV strain Winona (W) were analyzed including nine new strain W isolates sequenced completely in this study. Isolates of other strains of PPV with more than one isolate with the complete genome sequence available in GenBank were included also in this study for comparison and analysis. Five intrastrain recombination events were detected among the PPV W isolates, one among PPV C strain isolates, and one among PPV M strain isolates. Four (29%) of the PPV W isolates analyzed are recombinants; one of which (P2-1) is a mosaic, with three recombination events identified. A new interstrain recombinant event was identified between a strain M isolate and a strain Rec isolate, a known recombinant. In silico recombination studies and pairwise distance analyses of PPV strain D isolates indicate that a threshold of genetic diversity exists for the detectability of recombination events, in the range of approximately 0.78 × 10−2 to 1.33 × 10−2 mean pairwise distance. RDP4 analyses indicate that in the case of PPV Rec isolates there may be a recombinant breakpoint distinct from the obvious transition point of strain sequences. Evidence was obtained that indicates that the frequency of PPV recombination is underestimated, which may be true for other RNA viruses where low genetic diversity exists.