DisplayTitle

Maize fine streak virus, a New Leafhopper-Transmitted Rhabdovirus

First author: USDA-ARS, Corn and Soybean Research and Department of Plant Pathology, The Ohio State University, Wooster 44691; second and seventh authors: Kansas State University Agricultural Research Center, Hays 67601; third author: Molecular and Cellular Imaging Center, OARDC, Wooster, OH 44691; fourth and fifth authors: USDA-ARS, Corn and Soybean Research, Wooster, OH 44691; sixth and twelfth authors: Department of Entomology, The Ohio State University, Wooster 44691; eighth author: Volcani Center, Bet-Dagan, Israel; ninth author: Syngenta Seeds, Naples, FL 34114; tenth author: Entomology, Plant Pathology and Weed Science, New Mexico State University, Las Cruces 88003; and eleventh author: Department of Plant Pathology, The Ohio State University, Wooster 44691

A previously uncharacterized virus was isolated from fall-planted sweet corn (Zea mays L., Syngenta GSS 0966) leaves showing fine chlorotic streaks. Symptomatic plants were negative in enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay against many maize viruses, but reacted weakly with antisera to Sorghum stunt mosaic virus suggesting a distant relationship between the viruses. The virus was readily transmitted by vascular puncture inoculation (VPI), but not by leaf-rub inoculation. Symptoms on maize included dwarfing and fine chlorotic streaks along intermediate and small veins that developed 12 to 17 days post-VPI. The isolated virus was bacilliform (231 ± 5 nm long and 71 ± 2 nm wide), with a knobby surface, and obvious helical structure typical of rhabdovirus morphology. Nucleorhabdovirus virions were observed by transmission electron microscopy of infected maize leaf tissue sections. Proteins unique to infected plants were observed in extracts of infected leaves, and the isolated virion contained three proteins with molecular masses 82 ± 2, 50 ± 3, and 32 ± 2 kDa. Preliminary sequence analysis indicated the virus had similarity to members of the family Rhabdoviridae. The virus was transmitted by Graminella nigrifrons under persistent conditions. The data indicate the virus, provisionally designated Maize fine streak virus, is a new species in the genus Nucleorhabdovirus.

Additional keywords:: corn, emerging virus, Maize mosaic virus, virus disease.