Evaluation of higher plant virus resistance genes in the green alga, Chlorella variabilis NC64A, during the early phase of infection with Paramecium bursaria chlorella virus-1

Authors

Janet M. Rowe, University of California - Irvine
David D. Dunigan, University of Nebraska-LincolnFollow
Guillaume Blanc, Aix-Marseille Université
James R. Gurnon, University of Nebraska-LincolnFollow
Yuannan Xia, University of Nebraska-LincolnFollow
James L. Van Etten, University of Nebraska-LincolnFollow

Document Type

Article

Date of this Version

2013

Citation

Published in Virology 442:2 (August 1, 2013), pp. 101–113; DOI: 10.1016/j.virol.2013.04.018

Comments

Copyright © 2013 Elsevier Inc. Used by permission.

Abstract

With growing industrial interest in algae plus their critical roles in aquatic systems, the need to understand the effects of algal pathogens is increasing. We examined a model algal host–virus system, Chlorella variabilis NC64A and virus, PBCV-1. C. variabilis encodes 375 homologs to genes involved in RNA silencing and in response to virus infection in higher plants. Illumina RNA-Seq data showed that 325 of these homologs were expressed in healthy and early PBCV-1 infected (≤60 min) cells. For each of the RNA silencing genes to which homologs were found, mRNA transcripts were detected in healthy and infected cells. C. variabilis, like higher plants, may employ certain RNA silencing pathways to defend itself against virus infection. To our knowledge this is the first examination of RNA silencing genes in algae beyond core proteins, and the first analysis of their transcription during virus infection.