Strain-specific mobilization and amplification of a transgenic defective-interfering DNA of the geminivirus beet curly top virus.

Transgenic Nicotiana benthamiana plants have been constructed which bear integrated, tandemly repeated copies of a beet curly top virus (BCTV) defective-interfering (DI) DNA derived from the Logan strain. Transgenic DI-DNA plant lines challenge-inoculated with BCTV-Logan exhibited delayed and attenuated symptoms compared to nontransgenic plants. Infection of transgenic plants with the Logan strain resulted in the mobilization of the integrated DI-DNA sequence, which was subsequently amplified as an episome. The accumulation of Logan helper virus DNA forms was reduced in transgenic plants, relative to nontransgenic plants. In contrast, no delay or attenuation of symptoms was observed for transgenic plants challenge-inoculated with the BCTV strains CFH and Worland. Infection by the CFH and Worland strains did not result in mobilization or amplification of the integrated Logan DI-DNA sequence, and no consistent differences in the accumulation of CFH or Worland genomic viral DNA forms were observed among transgenic and nontransgenic plants. These results, and a comparison of putative DNA replication origin sequences, suggest that BCTV strains display specificity with respect to recognition of heterologous DNA replication origin cis-elements.