Characterization of a New Barley Mild Mosaic Virus Pathotype in France

In March 2002 in a French field, severe mosaic symptoms appeared on plants of the barley cultivar Tokyo with the rym5 locus controlling resistance to all European strains of barley yellow mosaic virus (BaYMV) and barley mild mosaic virus (BaMMV). Electron microscopic examination revealed that the disease symptoms were associated with the presence of flexuous particles which resemble bymoviruses. From these observations and after enzyme-linked immunosorbent assay analysis it was first determined that the plants could be infected by BaMMV and BaYMV. Mechanical transmission of these viruses to the barley cultivar Magie susceptible to both viruses was only possible for BaMMV. This new pathotype (BaMMV-Sil) from Sillery (Marne Department, 51, France), in contrast to another mechanically transmitted French BaMMV isolate (BaMMV-MF), could be transmitted mechanically to two barley cultivars (Tokyo, Misato Golden), Arachis hypogaea, Datura stramonium and Lactuca sativa. BaMMV-Sil was indistinguishable from three BaMMV isolates from Germany (G), Japan (Ka1) and France (PF) by monoclonal antibodies in ELISA while the Japanese isolate (Na1) and BaMMV-MF were distinguishable from all. The sequence of the 3′-terminal region of BaMMV-Sil RNA1 was determined. Comparison with previously published sequence data of capsid proteins indicated that BaMMV-Sil was closely related to BaMMV-Ka1, BaMMV-G and another German isolate (BaMMV-ASL1). Resistance-breaking BaMMV strains able to infect cultivars carrying the rym5 locus have also been described in Japan (BaMMV-Na1) and Korea (BaMMV-Kor). No specific amino acid differences were detected between the capsid proteins of BaMMV-Sil, BaMMV-Na1, BaMMV-Kor and those BaMMV isolates that do not overcome the rym5 resistance gene. These results indicate that BaMMV-Sil is a new pathotype of BaMMV in France and suggests that the capsid protein is not the determining factor of the pathogenicity towards the resistance gene rym5.