Biological properties and genomic sequence of an isolate of cherry rasp leaf virus from tomato

Cherry rasp leaf virus (CRLV) is found in the USA causing disease in Prunus and Malus spp. In 2016, symptomatic high tunnel grown tomatoes (Solanum lycopersicum L.) from Minnesota exhibiting viral symptoms were found to contain ~30 nm spherical particles. High throughput sequencing revealed two distinct viral contigs, attributed to RNA 1 (complete, MK952187) and RNA 2 (5′ partial, MK952188) of a new CRLV isolate. The isolate, denoted CRLV-tomato (CRLV-tom), shared 87–98% nucleotide identity with three previously sequenced isolates of CRLV from apple, potato, and elderberry. CRLV-tom was mechanically inoculated into Nicotiana benthamiana and caused symptoms of interveinal necrotic line patterns three weeks after inoculation. Symptoms progressed into leaf rugosity and chlorosis ten weeks after inoculation. Inoculated greenhouse tomatoes were infected by CRLV, as detected by RT-PCR, but were asymptomatic indicating tomato host resistance genes and environmental conditions may impact symptom development in tomatoes. This is the first report of CRLV infecting tomato.