The 30-Kilodalton Gene Product of Tobacco Mosaic Virus Potentiates Virus Movement
CARL M. DEOM 1,
MELVIN J. OLIVER 2, and
ROGER N. BEACHY 3
1 Postdoctoral associate, Department of Biology, Washington University, St. Louis, MO 63130.
2 Assistant professor in the Department of Biology and PGEL, New Mexico State University, Las Cruces, NM 88003.
3 Professor in the Department of Biology, Washington University, St. Louis, MO 63130.
The proposed role of the 30-kilodalton(kD) protein of tobacco mosaic virus is to facilitate cell-to-cell spread of the virus-during infection. To directly define the function of the protein, a chimeric gene containing a cloned complementary DNA of the 30-kD protein gene was introduced into tobacco cells via a Ti plasmid-mediated transformation system of Agrobacterium tumefaciens. Transgenic plants regenerated from transformed tobacco cells expressed the 30-kD protein messenger RNA and accumulated 30-kD protein. Seedlings expressing the 30-kD protein gene complemented the Lsl mutant of TMV, a mutant that is temperature-sensitive in cell-to-cell movement. In addition, enhanced movement of the Lsl virus at the permissive temperature was detected in seedlings that express the 30-kD protein gene. These results conclusively demonstrate that the 30-kD protein of tobacco mosaic virus potentiates the movement of the virus from cell to cell.
Submitted on April 20, 1987
Accepted on June 27, 1987
