TL;DR
The risk of environmental escape of a bioengineered, recombinant maize mosaic virus (MMV-GFP) that encodes green fluorescent protein as a test case was examined and MMV-GFP was less fit than MMV-WT with regards to transmission biology and plant infection.
Tomato spotted wilt virus (TSWV) is an economically devastating pathogen that rapidly overcomes genetic resistance in major crops. Reverse genetic systems are crucial for investigating plant-virus interactions and resistance breaking mechanisms, and developing these tools for segmented ambisense RNA viruses remains a crucial challenge. Current TSWV-clones rely on extensively modified Asian isolates requiring co-delivery of multiple replication helpers and viral silencing suppressors. Streamlining these systems for regionally significant strains with minimal genetic alterations is essential. Here we developed the first infectious clone of a USA TSWV isolate (PA01). Three binary plasmids contain cDNAs for the antigenomic L and S segments, and the genomic M segment, with enhanced GFP replacing NSs on the S segment. Co-delivery of the cucumovirus 2b alone or in combination with tombusvirus P19 or begomovirus AL2, achieved a high proportion of systemically infected Nicotiana benthamiana and Capsicum annuum plants. In N. tabacum, co-delivering the Caenorhabditis elegans cell death suppressor CED-9, or using NahG transgenic plants produced 20 to 62% systemically infected plants. These data indicate that in addition to the anti-viral RNA silencing machinery, additional host defense pathways influence TSWV rescue and systemic infection from cDNA.
This review summarizes recent progress in elucidating plant virus-vector molecular interactions and their potential use in innovative strategies for virus and vector control.
Virus-induced gene silencing (VIGS) has evolved from a conceptual demonstration of antiviral defense into a pivotal reverse-genetics platform for plant functional genomics. By exploiting engineered DNA- or RNA-based viral vectors, VIGS enables rapid, sequence-specific transcript knockdown through RNA-mediated degradation of target transcripts. Recent refinements in vector design, inoculation strategies, and viral species selection, such as TRV, BSMV, and FoMV, have expanded its application to previously recalcitrant plants, including major crops and emerging weed models. In weeds, functional genomics remains particularly challenging due to high genetic variability, limited genomic resources, and incompatibility with conventional viral vectors and transformation systems. In this context, VIGS provides a tractable approach to investigate genes associated with herbicide resistance, metabolic adaptation, and stress tolerance. Beyond weed biology, its application to studies of immune signaling, hormonal crosstalk, and secondary metabolism highlights VIGS as a versatile biotechnology for elucidating gene function and supporting next-generation strategies in plant improvement and integrated pest management.
A novel plant genome editing system is developed by delivering Cas9, Cas12f, and Cas12j nucleases along with their guide RNAs using a broad-host-range geminivirus, Wheat dwarf India virus (WDIV), in combination with Ageratum yellow leaf curl betasatellite (AYLCB).
This review comprehensively evaluates the rational design of classical animal herpesvirus vectors, including pseudorabies virus, herpesvirus of turkeys, and feline herpesvirus type 1, providing perspectives on how continuous biotechnological innovations will empower herpesvirus vectors to serve as formidable prophylactic tools against emerging and re-emerging infectious diseases.
The results indicate that the genetic architecture of corn in response to MaYMV is complex, and that developing immune cultivars may not be achievable using natural sources of genetic variation, but this study provides a foundation for breeding maize with improved tolerance and advances the understanding of host response to MaYMV infection.