Nanoviruses multiply in the nucleus of infected cells by rolling-circle replication (RCR). Upon infection of a host cell, short DNA molecules encapsidated together with the viral ssDNA serve as primers for host polymerase(s) to initiate synthesis of the complementary (minus) strand DNA, creating a double strand (16). The double strand serves as transcription template and for RCR, which is initiated and terminated by replication initiator (Rep) proteins. Nanoviruses encode different Rep proteins; however, only the 33-kDa M-Rep protein is required and sufficient to catalyze replication initiation of its coding DNA and of the other virus genome components (22,39,40). Faba bean necrotic yellows virus (FBNYV) M-Rep, expressed in Escherichia coli, has origin-specific DNA cleavage and nucleotidyl transfer activities in vitro and is an ATPase, both essential functions for viral DNA replication in vivo (39). During RCR the M-Rep protein cleaves the consensus nonamer sequence TAGTATT2AC located at the origin of replication (39), creating a 3Ј-OH terminus and, by analogy to geminivirus replication, is thought to prime viral (plus) strand DNA synthesis (26).For geminivirus Rep proteins, interactions with several host proteins have been described (1, 25). All these different proteins interacting with Rep were identified by using the yeast two-hybrid system. However, due to difficulties encountered in purifying the respective protein complexes, very little is known about the in planta interaction of these proteins. For nanoviruses, nothing is known about the host proteins that interact with M-Rep during replication.We have designed oligohistidine-tagged M-Rep variants of the nanovirus FBNYV that are proficient to catalyze viral DNA replication initiation and termination in Nicotiana benthamiana and report the affinity purification from plant tissue of enzymatically active histidine-tagged M-Rep protein.To the best of our knowledge, this is the first example of a tagged ssDNA virus replication initiator protein that is functional in vivo and that is readily purified from plant tissue. In addition, replicons encoding oligohistidine-tagged M-Rep multiplied and moved systemically along with wild-type FBNYV in its natural host Vicia faba. The replicon encoding the modified M-Rep protein could be transmitted by aphids in a mixed infection with wild-type virus. Finally, we show the in planta interaction of the tagged M-Rep with wild-type M-Rep, suggesting that this protein may be used to identify other protein partners.
MATERIALS AND METHODSConstruction of DNA-R-His replicons of FBNYV. Basic molecular biology protocols were as described previously (34). Cloning of FBNYV DNAs of the Egyptian isolate EVI-93 (FBNYV-EG) has also been described elsewhere (39). A BamHI site was introduced by PCR-based QuikChange mutagenesis (Stratagene) at nucleotide position 54 into the noncoding sequence of FBNYV-EG DNA-R (previously designated C2) (23, 39) by using the primers C2BamHI(ϩ)