<i>In Silico</i> Virome Analysis of Chinese Narcissus Transcriptomes Reveals Diverse Virus Species and Genetic Diversity at Different Flower Development Stages

Abstract

Viromes of Chinese narcissus flowers were explored using transcriptome data from 20 samples collected at different flower development stages. Quality controlled raw data underwent de novo assembly, resulting in 5893 viral contigs that matched the seven virus species. The most abundant viruses were narcissus common latent virus (NCLV), narcissus yellow stripe virus (NYSV), and narcissus mottling-associated virus (NMaV). As flower development stages advanced, white tepal plants showed an increase in the proportion of viral reads, while the variation in viral proportion among yellow tepal plants was relatively small. Narcissus degeneration virus (NDV) dominated the white tepal samples, whereas NDV and NYSV prevailed in the yellow tepal samples. Potyviruses, particularly NDV, are the primary infectious viruses. De novo assembly generated viral contigs for five viruses, yielding complete genomes for NCLV, NDV, narcissus late season yellow virus (NLSYV), and NYSV. Phylogenetic analysis revealed genetic diversity, with distinct NCLV, NMaV, NDV, NLSYV, and NYSV groups. This study provides valuable insights into the viromes and genetic diversity of viruses in Chinese narcissus flowers.

Keywords

• Chinese narcissus
• virome
• transcriptome
• viral contigs
• viral genomes
• phylogenetic analysis