Studies toward the understanding of the cucumber necrosis virus uncoating process

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Plant viruses cause disease in a variety of crops worldwide resulting in decreased crop quality and quantity. In Canada, viruses are responsible for serious diseases in several crops, including potato, wheat, many greenhouse crops, grapes, stone fruits, and others. Current methods for virus disease control are often not sufficiently robust to eliminate virus disease and, moreover, viruses can often overcome existing control methods via mutation.  Thus, new virus disease control strategies are required to complement and strengthen current strategies. Plant viruses are absolutely dependent on plant host cells for their multiplication and spread, and moreover, viruses must interact with components of the cell in a very specific way. Recent research on virus/host interactions has identified some of the required host components, and in some cases, it has been shown that removal or alteration of these components can decrease, if not eliminate, the ability of the virus to multiply. Thus, increasing knowledge in this area of virus/host interactions should assist in the design of new strategies for future control of virus infection. Plant virus particles, which consist of a genome that is surrounded by a protective coat, must be able to release the genome from the coat in order to begin the infection process.  Despite the importance of virus uncoating in the establishment and maintenance of infection, little is known about how uncoating occurs, where in the cell it occurs, or what specific host components are required.  The aim of this proposal is increase our knowledge of the virus uncoating process.  It is anticipated that this knowledge will contribute to the design of new strategies for future virus disease management.