Changes in the host proteome and transcriptome induced by viroid infection

Abstract

Many hypotheses have been advanced to explain how viroid infection might alter host gene expression to produce the symptoms seen on diseased plants. Only recently, however, has a series of technological advances allowed these hypotheses to be tested experimentally. The first section of this chapter describes changes in the host proteome following viroid infection. Next, we describe changes at the transcriptional level as measured by microarray analysis and other genomics-based approaches and evidence for both pre- and posttranscriptional regulation. Interactions between proteins and nucleic acids result in formation of molecular networks, and identification of these “interactomes” allows integration of results obtained by transcriptomic and proteomic approaches. The final section describes interactions between viroids and several host proteins, outlining possible directions for future systems-based research.