Preliminary Analysis on Heterosigma akashiwo Virus DNA

Abstract

The partial DNA sequencing of a virus that infects an alga causing harmful blooms, Heterosigma akashiwo is reported. Approximately 2 kb of viral DNA was sequenced and 2 open reading frames (ORFs) were found. The deduced amino acid sequences of both ORFs showed high similarity to those of a typical microalgal virus, Paramecium bursaria Chlorella virus 1 (PBCV-1). To develop a simple PCR for detecting HaV, 3 primer sets were designed using the sequence data. They were reactive with 6 HaV isolates of different origins, and also applicable for detection of HaV particles suspended in natural seawater without extraction of the viral DNA.