6.4 Viroids, virusoids, and prions

Learning objectives

• Describe viroids and their unique characteristics
• Describe virusoids and their unique characteristics
• Describe prions and their unique characteristics

Research attempts to discover the causative agents of previously uninvestigated diseases have led to the discovery of nonliving disease agents quite different from viruses. These include particles consisting only of RNA or only of protein that, nonetheless, are able to self-propagate at the expense of a host—a key similarity to viruses that allows them to cause disease conditions. To date, these discoveries include viroids, virusoids, and the proteinaceous prions.

Viroids

In 1971, Theodor Diener , a pathologist working at the Agriculture Research Service, discovered an acellular particle that he named a viroid, meaning “virus-like.” Viroids consist only of a short strand of circular RNA capable of self-replication. The first viroid discovered was found to cause potato tuber spindle disease , which causes slower sprouting and various deformities in potato plants (see [link] ). Like viruses, potato spindle tuber viroids (PSTVs) take control of the host machinery to replicate their RNA genome. Unlike viruses, viroids do not have a protein coat to protect their genetic information.

Viroids can result in devastating losses of commercially important agricultural food crops grown in fields and orchards. Since the discovery of PSTV, other viroids have been discovered that cause diseases in plants. Tomato planta macho viroid (TPMVd) infects tomato plants, which causes loss of chlorophyll, disfigured and brittle leaves, and very small tomatoes, resulting in loss of productivity in this field crop. Avocado sunblotch viroid (ASBVd) results in lower yields and poorer-quality fruit. ASBVd is the smallest viroid discovered thus far that infects plants. Peach latent mosaic viroid (PLMVd) can cause necrosis of flower buds and branches, and wounding of ripened fruit, which leads to fungal and bacterial growth in the fruit. PLMVd can also cause similar pathological changes in plums, nectarines, apricots, and cherries, resulting in decreased productivity in these orchards, as well. Viroids, in general, can be dispersed mechanically during crop maintenance or harvesting, vegetative reproduction, and possibly via seeds and insects, resulting in a severe drop in food availability and devastating economic consequences.

Virusoids

A second type of pathogenic RNA that can infect commercially important agricultural crops are the virusoid s , which are subviral particles best described as non–self-replicating ssRNAs. RNA replication of virusoid s is similar to that of viroids but, unlike viroids, virusoids require that the cell also be infected with a specific “helper” virus. There are currently only five described types of virusoids and their associated helper viruses . The helper viruses are all from the family of Sobemoviruses . An example of a helper virus is the subterranean clover mottle virus, which has an associated virusoid packaged inside the viral capsid. Once the helper virus enters the host cell, the virusoids are released and can be found free in plant cell cytoplasm, where they possess ribozyme activity. The helper virus undergoes typical viral replication independent of the activity of the virusoid. The virusoid genomes are small, only 220 to 388 nucleotides long. A virusoid genome does not code for any proteins, but instead serves only to replicate virusoid RNA.