Evaluation of higher plant virus resistance genes in the green alga, Chlorella variabilis NC64A, during the early phase of infection with Paramecium bursaria chlorella virus-1

•Chlorella variabilis has homologs to plant RNA silencing and virus defense genes.•The majority (325 of 375) are expressed during the early phase of virus infection.•C. variabilis may employ RNA silencing for gene regulation and/or virus response.•One of two strong candidate pathways is also important in plant responses to DNA viruses.•Knowledge in plant systems can be applicable to analogous studies on green algae.

With growing industrial interest in algae plus their critical roles in aquatic systems, the need to understand the effects of algal pathogens is increasing. We examined a model algal host–virus system, Chlorella variabilis NC64A and virus, PBCV-1. C. variabilis encodes 375 homologs to genes involved in RNA silencing and in response to virus infection in higher plants. Illumina RNA-Seq data showed that 325 of these homologs were expressed in healthy and early PBCV-1 infected (≤60 min) cells. For each of the RNA silencing genes to which homologs were found, mRNA transcripts were detected in healthy and infected cells. C. variabilis, like higher plants, may employ certain RNA silencing pathways to defend itself against virus infection. To our knowledge this is the first examination of RNA silencing genes in algae beyond core proteins, and the first analysis of their transcription during virus infection.