title: Genome sequence of Erinnyis ello granulovirus (ErelGV), a natural cassava hornworm pesticide and the first sequenced sphingid-infecting betabaculovirus.
abstract: BACKGROUND
  Cassava (Manihot esculenta) is the basic source for dietary energy of 500 million people in the world. In Brazil, Erinnyis ello ello (Lepidoptera: Sphingidae) is a major pest of cassava crops and a bottleneck for its production. In the 1980s, a naturally occurring baculovirus was isolated from E. ello larva and successfully applied as a bio-pesticide in the field. Here, we described the structure, the complete genome sequence, and the phylogenetic relationships of the first sphingid-infecting betabaculovirus.
  
  
  RESULTS
  The baculovirus isolated from the cassava hornworm cadavers is a betabaculovirus designated Erinnyis ello granulovirus (ErelGV). The 102,759 bp long genome has a G + C content of 38.7%. We found 130 putative ORFs coding for polypeptides of at least 50 amino acid residues. Only eight genes were found to be unique. ErelGV is closely related to ChocGV and PiraGV isolates. We did not find typical homologous regions and cathepsin and chitinase homologous genes are lacked. The presence of he65 and p43 homologous genes suggests horizontal gene transfer from Alphabaculovirus. Moreover, we found a nucleotide metabolism-related gene and two genes that could be acquired probably from Densovirus.
  
  
  CONCLUSIONS
  The ErelGV represents a new virus species from the genus Betabaculovirus and is the closest relative of ChocGV. It contains a dUTPase-like, a he65-like, p43-like genes, which are also found in several other alpha- and betabaculovirus genomes, and two Densovirus-related genes. Importantly, recombination events between insect viruses from unrelated families and genera might drive baculovirus genomic evolution.
authors.forename: Daniel Mendes Pereira
authors.initials: DM
authors.lastname: Ardisson-Araújo
authors.forename: Fernando Lucas
authors.initials: FL
authors.lastname: de Melo
authors.forename: Miguel de Souza
authors.initials: Mde S
authors.lastname: Andrade
authors.forename: William
authors.initials: W
authors.lastname: Sihler
authors.forename: Sonia Nair
authors.initials: SN
authors.lastname: Báo
authors.affiliation: Cell Biology Department, Laboratory of Baculovirus, University of Brasília, 70910-900 Brasília, DF, Brazil. bergmann@unb.br.
authors.forename: Bergmann Morais
authors.initials: BM
authors.lastname: Ribeiro
authors.forename: Marlinda Lobo
authors.initials: ML
authors.lastname: de Souza
mesh_terms: D000818:Animals; D030541:Databases, Genetic; D016679:Genome, Viral; D025722:Granulovirus / Q000145:classification / Q000235:genetics* / Q000302:isolation & purification; D007814:Larva / Q000821:virology; D007915:Lepidoptera / Q000254:growth & development / Q000821:virology*; D002365:Manihot / Q000469:parasitology; D016366:Open Reading Frames / Q000235:genetics; D010802:Phylogeny; D011755:Pyrophosphatases / Q000235:genetics; D017422:Sequence Analysis, DNA; D014764:Viral Proteins / Q000145:classification / Q000235:genetics
chemical_list: D014764:Viral Proteins; D011755:Pyrophosphatases; C023278:uridine triphosphatase