Journal of Virology (2010) 84, 4706-4713

François Hoh, Marilyne Uzest, Martin Drucker, Célia Plisson-Chastang, Patrick Bron, Stéphane Blanc and Christian Dumas (2010)
Structural insights into the molecular mechanisms of Cauliflower mosaic virus transmission by its insect vector
Journal of Virology 84 (9), 4706-4713
Abstract: Cauliflower mosaic virus (CaMV) is transmitted from plant to plant through a seemingly simple interaction with insect vectors. This process involves an aphid receptor and two viral proteins, P2 and P3. P2 binds to both the aphid receptor and P3, itself tightly associated with the virus particle, with the ensemble forming a transmissible viral complex. Here, we describe the conformations of both unliganded CaMV P3 protein and its virion-associated form. X-ray crystallography revealed that the N-terminal domain of unliganded P3 is a tetrameric parallel coiled coil with a unique organization showing two successive four-stranded subdomains with opposite supercoiling handedness stabilized by a ring of interchain disulfide bridges. A structural model of virus-liganded P3 proteins, folding as an antiparallel coiled-coil network coating the virus surface, was derived from molecular modeling. Our results highlight the structural and biological versatility of this coiled-coil structure and provide new insights into the molecular mechanisms involved in CaMV acquisition and transmission by the insect vector.
(The abstract is excluded from the Creative Commons licence and has been copied with permission by the publisher.)
Link to article at publishers website
Database assignments for author(s): Stéphane Blanc, Martin Drucker

Research topic(s) for pests/diseases/weeds:
transmission/dispersal of plant diseases
molecular biology - genes

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Pest and/or beneficial records:

Beneficial	Pest/Disease/Weed	Crop/Product	Country	Quarant.
	Caulimovirus tessellobrassicae