Genetic Analysis of Tobamovirus-Host Interactions

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Simple RNA viruses have evolved complex interactions with their host's cellular machinery that facilitate their replication, cell-to-cell movement, and systemic transport. These interactions often lead to a disruption in the development and homeostasis of the host's cellular processes, resulting in the expression of disease symptoms that impact the host's well being and/or its economic value. The goals of this project focus on the identification of host components that are either involved in or affected by virus replication. To accomplish these goals the molecular tools available for the plant virus Tobacco mosaic virus (TMV) will be combined with the genetic tractability of Arabidopsis thaliana to identify novel host genes that either directly contribute to the virus life-cycle or are transcriptionally altered during the infection process. Specific studies in this project will address three objectives. 1) A map-based cloning approach will be used to identify a previously classified Arabidopsis locus that controls the rate of TMV cell-to-cell movement. Additional studies will address the function of this locus and its role in virus cell-to-cell movement. 2) Available microarray technologies will be used to identify Arabidopsis genes that are differentially regulated during distinct stages of the TMV infection cycle, including inoculated and systemically infected whole leaf tissue as well as synchronously infected protoplasts. 3) Symptoms displayed by TMV infected Arabidopsis will be used to identify Arabidopsis mutants with altered virus susceptibilities. Map-based cloning strategies will then be initiated to identify the genes that impart these altered susceptibilities. Overall, studies from this project should significantly enhance our understanding of the interactions that occur between viruses and their hosts.