Detection of members of the Secoviridae in the Tallgrass Prairie Preserve, Osage County, Oklahoma, USA

Viruses are most frequently discovered because they cause disease. To expand knowledge of plant-associated viruses beyond these narrow constraints, non-cultivated plants of the Tallgrass Prairie of the United States were systematically surveyed for evidence of viruses. This report discusses putative viruses of the family Secoviridae identified by the survey. Sequence analysis suggests the presence of at least six viruses in the study site, including Bean pod mottle virus, Maize chlorotic dwarf virus, three previously undescribed viruses within the subfamily Comovirinae and one unclassifiable virus.

► Putative viruses of the family Secoviridae identified by the survey of non-cultivated plants in the Tallgrass Prairie of the United States. ► Bean pod mottle virus, Maize chlorotic dwarf virus, three previously undescribed viruses within the subfamily Comovirinae and one unclassifiable virus were identified by their sequences. ► Nearly complete RNA-1 and RNA-2 sequences of Asclepias virus-TGP2 placed this virus in the subfamily Comovirinae but could not ally it with one of the three known genera of the subfamily.