Geminiviruses encode additional small proteins with specific subcellular localizations and virulence function

Pan Gong, Huang Tan, Siwen Zhao, Hao Li, Hui Liu, Yu Ma, Xi Zhang, Junjie Rong, Xing Fu, Rosa Lozano-Durán (), Fangfang Li () and Xueping Zhou ()
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Pan Gong: Institute of Plant Protection, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences
Huang Tan: Chinese Academy of Sciences
Siwen Zhao: Institute of Plant Protection, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences
Hao Li: Institute of Plant Protection, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences
Hui Liu: Institute of Biotechnology, Zhejiang University
Yu Ma: Chinese Academy of Sciences
Xi Zhang: Chinese Academy of Sciences
Junjie Rong: Chinese Academy of Sciences
Xing Fu: Chinese Academy of Sciences
Rosa Lozano-Durán: Chinese Academy of Sciences
Fangfang Li: Institute of Plant Protection, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences
Xueping Zhou: Institute of Plant Protection, Chinese Academy of Agricultural Sciences

Nature Communications, 2021, vol. 12, issue 1, 1-11

Abstract: Abstract Geminiviruses are plant viruses with limited coding capacity. Geminivirus-encoded proteins are traditionally identified by applying a 10-kDa arbitrary threshold; however, it is increasingly clear that small proteins play relevant roles in biological systems, which calls for the reconsideration of this criterion. Here, we show that geminiviral genomes contain additional ORFs. Using tomato yellow leaf curl virus, we demonstrate that some of these small ORFs are expressed during the infection, and that the encoded proteins display specific subcellular localizations. We prove that the largest of these additional ORFs, which we name V3, is required for full viral infection, and that the V3 protein localizes in the Golgi apparatus and functions as an RNA silencing suppressor. These results imply that the repertoire of geminiviral proteins can be expanded, and that getting a comprehensive overview of the molecular plant-geminivirus interactions will require the detailed study of small ORFs so far neglected.

Date: 2021
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DOI: 10.1038/s41467-021-24617-4

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