A Novel Divergent Geminivirus Identified in Asymptomatic New World Cactaceae Plants.

ABSTRACT: Cactaceae comprise a diverse and iconic group of flowering plants which are almost exclusively indigenous to the New World. The wide variety of growth forms found amongst the cacti have led to the trafficking of many species throughout the world as ornamentals. Despite the evolution and physiological properties of these plants having been extensively studied, little research has focused on cactus-associated viral communities. While only single-stranded RNA viruses had ever been reported in cacti, here we report the discovery of cactus-infecting single-stranded DNA viruses. These viruses all apparently belong to a single divergent species of the family Geminiviridae and have been tentatively named Opuntia virus 1 (OpV1). A total of 79 apparently complete OpV1 genomes were recovered f

SUBMITTER: Fontenele RS 

PROVIDER: S-EPMC7232249 | biostudies-literature | 2020 Apr

REPOSITORIES: biostudies-literature