Tracking of Tobacco Mosaic Virus in Taxonomically Different Plant Fungi

Plant viruses have been traditionally considered pathogens restricted to plant hosts. However, recent studies have shown that some plant viruses can infect and replicate in filamentous fungi and oomycetes, suggesting that their host range is broader than previously thought, and that their ecological interactions are more complex. In this study, we investigated the ability of the well-characterized positive-sense RNA plant virus Tobacco mosaic virus (TMV) to replicate in four major phytopathogenic fungi from different taxonomic groups: <i>Botrytis cinerea</i>, <i>Fusarium oxysporum</i> f. sp. <i>lycopersici</i>, <i>Verticillium dahliae</i>, and <i>Monilinia fructicola</i>. Using a recombinant TMV-based vector expressing a green fluorescent protein (TMV-GFP-1056) as reporter, we demonstrated that TMV can enter, replicate, and persist within the mycelia of <i>B. cinerea</i> and <i>V. dahliae</i>-at least through the first subculture. However, it cannot replicate in <i>F. oxysporum</i> f. sp. <i>lycopersici</i> and <i>M. fructicola</i>. RNA interference (RNAi) is a conserved eukaryotic epigenetic mechanism that provides an efficient defence against viruses. We explored the role of RNAi in the interaction between TMV and the mycelia of <i>V. dahliae</i> and <i>B. cinerea</i>. Our results revealed a strong induction of the <i>Dicer-like 1</i> and <i>Argonaute 1</i> genes, which are key compounds of the RNA silencing pathway. This RNAi-based response impaired TMV-GFP replication in both fungi. Notably, despite viral replication and RNAi activation, the virulence of <i>V. dahliae</i> and <i>B. cinerea</i> on their respective host plants remained unaffected. These findings reinforce the emerging recognition of cross-kingdom virus transmission and interactions, which likely play a crucial role in pathogen ecology and viral evolution. Understanding these virus-fungus interactions not only sheds light on RNAi interference silencing mechanisms but also suggests that plant viruses like TMV could serve as simple and effective tools for functional genomic studies in fungi, such as in <i>V. dahliae</i> and <i>B. cinerea</i>.