A novel gammapartitivirus from the entomopathogenic fungus Metarhizium brunneum.

Here, we report a novel partitivirus infecting Metarhizium brunneum, which was designated "Metarhizium brunneum partitivirus 2" (MbPV2). The complete genome of MbPV2 consists of two segments, dsRNA1 and dsRNA2, with each dsRNA possessing a single open reading frame (ORF). dsRNA1 (1,775 bp) encodes a conserved RNA-dependent RNA polymerase (RdRp) with the highest sequence similarity to Plasmopara viticola associated partitivirus 1 (PvAPV1), while dsRNA2 (1,568 bp) encodes a coat protein (CP) with the highest sequence similarity to Colletotrichum partitivirus 1 (CtParV1). Phylogenetic analysis based on RdRp sequences showed that MbPV2 is a new member of the genus Gammapartitivirus, family Partitiviridae. This is the first report of a gammapartitivirus that infects the entomopathogenic fungus Metarhizium brunneum.