Open AccessIdentification of the genome sequence of Zostera associated varicosavirus 1, a novel negative-sense RNA virus, in the common eelgrass (Zostera marina) transcriptome
Author(s) -
Chaerim Shin,
Dongjin Choi,
Yoonsoo Hahn
Publication year - 2022
Publication title -
acta virologica
Language(s) - English
Resource type - Journals
SCImago Journal Rank - 0.412
H-Index - 33
eISSN - 1336-2305
pISSN - 0001-723X
DOI - 10.4149/av_2021_404
Subject(s) - biology , genetics , genome , orfs , zostera marina , gene , whole genome sequencing , phylogenetic tree , open reading frame , peptide sequence , ecology , ecosystem , seagrass
Varicosaviruses (the genus Varicosavirus) are bipartite, negative-sense, single-stranded RNA viruses that infect plants. We analyzed a transcriptome dataset isolated from the common eelgrass (Zostera marina) and identified a novel varicosavirus named Zostera associated varicosavirus 1 (ZaVV1). The ZaVV1 genome consists of two genomic segments: RNA1 (6,632-nt) has an open reading frame (ORF) encoding a large multi-functional polymerase protein (L), while RNA2 (4,304-nt) has four ORFs: one for a nucleocapsid protein and three for proteins with unknown functions (P2, P3, and P4). Sequence comparison and phylogenetic analysis using L proteins showed that ZaVV1 is a novel member of the genus Varicosavirus of the family Rhabdoviridae. The conserved regulatory elements involved in transcription termination/polyadenylation and transcription initiation were identified in the ZaVV1 gene-junction regions with the consensus sequence 3'-UAUUAUUCGCUCU-5' (in the negative-sense genome). The ZaVV1 genome sequence may be useful for studying the phylogenetic relationships of varicosaviruses and genome evolution of rhabdoviruses. Keywords: Zostera associated varicosavirus 1; Varicosavirus; Rhabdoviridae; common eelgrass; Zostera marina.