Characterization of yam mosaic viruses from Brazil reveals a new phylogenetic group and possible incursion from the African continent.

Yam (Dioscorea spp.) is an important crop for smallholder farmers in the Northeast region of Brazil. Wherever yam is grown, diseases caused by yam mosaic virus (YMV) are prevalent. In the present study, the diversity of YMV infecting Dioscorea cayennensis-rotundata was analyzed. In addition, five species of Dioscorea (D. alata, D. altissima, D. bulbifera, D. subhastata, and D. trifida) commonly found in Brazil were analyzed using ELISA and high-throughput sequencing (HTS). YMV was detected only in D. cayennensis-rotundata, of which 66.7% of the samples tested positive in ELISA. Three YMV genome sequences were assembled from HTS and one by Sanger sequencing to group the sequences in a clade phylogenetically distinct from YMV from other origins. Temporal phylogenetic analyses estimated the mean evolutionary rate for the CP gene of YMV as 1.76 × 10 substitutions per site per year, and the time to the most recent common ancestor as 168.68 years (95% Highest Posterior Density, HPD: 48.56-363.28 years), with a most likely geographic origin in the African continent. The data presented in this study contribute to reveal key aspects of the probable epidemiological history of YMV in Brazil.