RNAi-mediated SMV P3 cistron silencing confers significantly enhanced resistance to multiple Potyvirus strains and isolates in transgenic soybean.

key messageRobust RNAi-mediated resistance to multiple Potyvirus strains and isolates, but not to Secovirus BPMV, was conferred by expressing a short SMV P3 hairpin in soybean plants. Engineering resistance to multiple Potyvirus strains is of great interest because of a wide variability of the virus strains, and mixed infections of multiple viruses or strains commonly associated with field grown soybean. In this study, RNAi-mediated silencing of the soybean mosaic virus (SMV) P3 cistron, which is reported to participate in virus movements and pathogenesis and to be the putative determinant of SMV virulence, was used to induce resistance to multiple Potyvirus strains and isolates in soybean. A 302 bp inverted repeat (IR) of the P3 cistron, isolated from the SMV strain SC3, was introduced into soybean. The transgenic lines exhibited stable and enhanced resistance to SMV SC3 under field conditions over 3 consecutive years. The transgenic lines also showed significantly enhanced resistance to four other SMV strains (SC7, SC15, SC18, and SMV-R, a novel recombinant found in China), the soybean-infecting bean common mosaic virus (BCMV) and watermelon mosaic virus (WMV). Nevertheless, no significant differences were found between transgenic plants and their non-transformed (NT) counterparts in terms of resistance to bean pod mottle virus (BPMV, Secoviridae). Consistent with the results of resistance evaluations, the expression of the respective viral CP cistrons and virus accumulation were significantly lower in seven Potyvirus strains and isolates than in the NT plants, but not in BCMV-inoculated transgenic lines. The results demonstrate the effectiveness of engineering resistance to multiple Potyvirus strains and isolates via RNAi-mediated SMV P3 cistron silencing, and thus provide an effective control strategy against Potyvirus infections in soybean and other crops.