DNA Methylation Suppression by Bhendi Yellow Vein Mosaic Virus

Abstract

Bhendi yellow vein mosaic virus (BYVMV) belongs to the monopartite begomovirus associated with the β satellite. As a single-stranded DNA (ssDNA) virus, it should be amenable to transcriptional and post-transcriptional gene silencing (TGS and PTGS). Previously, we had demonstrated C2, C4 and βC1 to be having different levels of influence on PTGS. Hence in the present study, a series of experiments such as agroinfiltration, chop-polymerase chain reaction (PCR), quantitative PCR (qPCR) and bisulfite next generation sequencing (NGS) were designed to analyse the involvement of BYVMV proteins on DNA methylation suppression. From the preliminary studies, we concluded that BYVMV genes were responsible for TGS suppression and C2, C4 genes from BYVMV were selected for further studies. Agroinfiltration experiments with mutant C2 and C4 partial tandem repeat (PTR) constructs of BYVMV have confirmed the role of C2 and C4 in DNA methylation impairment. The protoplast replication assay has shown that C4 was not an impediment for viral DNA replication and subsequent agroinfiltration studies with the C4 mutant BYVMV PTR construct have revealed the involvement of C4 in viral DNA movement.