Geminiviruses replicate single-stranded DNA genomes through double-stranded intermediates that associate with cellular histone proteins. Unlike RNA viruses, they are subject to RNA-directed methylation pathways that target viral chromatin and likely lead to transcriptional gene silencing (TGS). Here we present evidence that the related geminivirus proteins AL2 and L2 are able to suppress this a...

Posttranscriptional gene silencing (PTGS) in plants is a natural defense mechanism against virus infection. In mixed infections, virus synergism is proposed to result from suppression of the host defense mechanism by the viruses. Synergistic severe mosaic disease caused by simultaneous infection with isolates of the Cameroon strain of African cassava mosaic virus (ACMV-[CM]) and East African ca...

AL2 and L2 are related proteins encoded by geminiviruses of the Begomovirus and Curtovirus genera, respectively. Both are pathogenicity determinants that cause enhanced susceptibility when expressed in transgenic plants. To understand how geminiviruses defeat host mechanisms that limit infectivity, we searched for cellular proteins that interact with AL2 and L2. Here, we present evidence that t...

Geminivirus, which causes yellow leaf curl disease of wax gourd plants, was detected using polymerase chain reaction with geminivirus-specific primers. The complete genomic sequence of a geminivirus isolated from wax gourd was determined by sequencing overlapping DNA fragments. The genome consisted of 2739 nucleotides, contained 5 open reading frames (ORFs) typical of geminiviruses, 2 ORFs on t...