De novo genome assembly and single nucleotide variations for Soybean yellow common mosaic virus using soybean flower bud transcriptome data

The soybean (Glycine max L.), also known as the soya bean, is an economically important legume species. Pathogens are always major threats for soybean cultivation. Several pathogens negatively affect soybean production. The soybean is also known as a susceptible host to many viruses. Recently, we carried out systematic analyses to identify viruses infecting soybeans using soybean transcriptome data. Our screening results showed that only few soybean transcriptomes contained virus-associated sequences. In this study, we further carried out bioinformatics analyses using a soybean flower bud transcriptome for virus identification, genome assembly, and single nucleotide variations (SNVs). We assembled the genome of Soybean yellow common mosaic virus (SYCMV) isolate China and revealed two SNVs. Phylogenetic analyses using three viral proteins suggested that SYCMV isolate China is closely related to SYCMV isolates from South Korea. Furthermore, we found that replication and mutation of SYCMV is relatively low, which might be associated with flower bud tissue. The most interesting finding was that SYCMV was not detected in the cytoplasmic male sterility (CMS) line derived from the non-CMS line that was severely infected by SYCMV. In summary, in silico analyses identified SYCMV from the soybean flower bud transcriptome, and a nearly complete genome of SYCMV was successfully assembled. Our results suggest that the low level of virus replication and mutation for SYCMV might be associated with plant tissues. Moreover, we provide the first evidence that male sterility might be used to eliminate viruses in crop plants.