Research Projects

Viruses of the Potyviridae group, to which cardamom mosaic virus (CdMV) belongs, possess a positive sense RNA that encodes a polyprotein. The polyprotein is processed by a set of three virus-encoded proteases, viz., P1, Helper component-protease (HC-Pro) and Nuclear inclusion protein a (NIa) proteases. Among these, NIa protease is the major protease which processes two-thirds of the polyprotein in cis and trans-cleavage reactions. It has been well documented that viral proteases of animal infecting viruses target host proteins for the manifestation of its pathogenesis in addition to polyprotein processing. However, not much plant viral proteases have been reported to target host proteins. Interestingly, cleavage sites of NIa protease of CdMV have been found to be present in eight functionally important cardamom proteins forming the basis for the hypothesis that NIa protease of CdMV might target host proteins in order to protect itself from the host defense process and to sustain and lead its infection cycle. The present proposal is aimed to study the cleavage of a set of earlier identified cardamom proteins by CdMV NIa protease.