Rapid evolutionary dynamics of zucchini yellow mosaic virus.
Zucchini yellow mosaic virus (ZYMV) is an economically important virus of cucurbit crops. However, little is known about the rate at which this virus has evolved within members of the family Cucurbitaceae, or the timescale of its epidemiological history. Herein, we present the first analysis of the evolutionary dynamics of ZYMV. Using a Bayesian coalescent approach we show that the coat protein of ZYMV has evolved at a mean rate of 5.0 x 10(-4) nucleotide substitutions per site, per year. Notably, this rate is equivalent to those observed in animal RNA viruses. Using the same approach we show that the lineages of ZYMV sampled here have an ancestry that dates back no more than 800 years, suggesting that human activities have played a central role in the dispersal of ZYMV. Finally, an analysis of phylogeographical structure provides strong evidence for the in situ evolution of ZYMV within individual countries.
Simmons
Heather E
HE
Center for Infectious Disease Dynamics, Department of Biology, The Pennsylvania State University, University Park, PA 16802, USA.
Holmes
Edward C
EC
Fogarty International Center, National Institutes of Health, Bethesda, MD 20892, USA.|Center for Infectious Disease Dynamics, Department of Biology, The Pennsylvania State University, University Park, PA 16802, USA.
Stephenson
Andrew G
AG
Center for Infectious Disease Dynamics, Department of Biology, The Pennsylvania State University, University Park, PA 16802, USA.
D001499:Bayes Theorem; D005075:Biological Evolution; D036022:Capsid Proteins / Q000235:genetics*; D019662:Cucurbitaceae / Q000821:virology*; D005814:Genes, Viral; D008969:Molecular Sequence Data; D009029:Mosaic Viruses / Q000235:genetics*
D036022:Capsid Proteins