Complete genome sequence of a novel mitovirus from the phytopathogenic fungus Rhizoctonia oryzae-sativae

A double-stranded RNA (dsRNA) segment was isolated from the filamentous phytopathogenic fungus Rhizoctonia oryzae-sativae and its full-length cDNA sequence (3038 nucleotides) was determined. Sequence analysis revealed that a large open reading frame (ORF) is present on the positive strand of this dsRNA segment when the mitochondrial genetic code was applied. The ORF encodes a putative RNA-dependent RNA polymerase, which shares the closest similarity with Rhizoctonia mitovirus 1 and Rhizophagus sp. RF1 mitovirus, with 43% and 29% identity, respectively. This dsRNA segment represents the replication form of a novel mitovirus that was temporarily designated Rhizoctonia oryzae-sativae mitovirus 1 (RoMV1). Phylogenetic analysis further suggested that RoMV1 belongs to the family Narnaviridae. This is the first study to report a mitovirus genome sequence in the phytopathogenic fungus R. oryzae-sativae.