Emergence of a new satellite RNA from cucumber mosaic virus isolate P1

The cucumber mosaic virus (CMV) isolate P1 caused very mild symptoms on many plant species. After serial passages by mechanical inoculation over five years, CMV P1 caused severe symptoms on several tobacco cultivars and tomato. A specific band of approximately 0.3 kb in length was amplified by RT PCR with primers synthesized based on reported CMV satellite RNA (satRNA) sequences. Sequence analysis showed there were two satRNAs (Sat P1 1 and Sat P1 2). Sat P1 1 contained 335 nucleotides, and Sat P1 2 contained 394 nucleotides. These two satRNAs shared 64% overall nucleotide sequence homology, and differences between the two satRNAs included mutations as well as deletions. Sat P1 1 was identical to a satRNA (Z96099) reported in 1995 in CMV P1. Based on differences in the sequence and secondary structure between these two satRNAs, we conclude that Sat P1 2 represents the emergence of a new satellite (necrotic satellite) from attenuated satRNA populations. The possible effect of the emergence of this new satRNA is discussed.

High-Level Accumulation of Exogenous Small RNAs Not Affecting Endogenous Small RNA Biogenesis and Function in Plants

RNA silencing is a fundamental plant defence and gene control mechanism in plants that are directed by 20-24 nucleotide （nt） small interfering RNA （siRNA） and microRNA （miRNA）. Infection of plants with viral pathogens or transformation of plants with RNA interference （RNAi） constructs is usually associated with high levels of exogenous siRNAs, but it is unclear if these siRNAs interfere with endogenous small RNA pathways and hence affect plant development. Here we provide evidence that viral satellite RNA （satRNA） infection does not affect siRNA and miRNA biogenesis or plant growth despite the extremely high level of satRNA-derived siRNAs. We generated transgenic Nicotiana benthamiana plants that no longer develop the specific yellowing symptoms generally associated with infection by Cucumber mosaic virus （CMV） Y-satellite RNA （Y-Sat）. We then used these plants to show that CMV Y-Sat infection did not cause any visible phenotypic changes in comparison to uninfected plants, despite the presence of high-level Y-Sat siRNAs. Furthermore, we showed that the accumulation of hairpin RNA （hpRNA）-derived siRNAs or miRNAs, and the level of siRNA-directed transgene silencing, are not significantly affected by CMV Y-Sat infection. Taken together, our results suggest that the high levels of exogenous siRNAs associated with viral infection or RNAi-inducing transgenes do not saturate the endogenous RNA silencing machineries and have no significant impact on normal plant development.