Abstract
(Geminiviridae) widespread in the Nile Basin, Sub-Saharan Africa and the Arabian Peninsula. The genome size of CLCuGeV is ~2.7 kb. This monopartite virus has been typically associated with alphasatellite and betasatellite, each having a genome size ranging between 1.3 and 1.4 kb. Leaves (sample KSA23} exhibiting curling and vein thickening were collected from okra plants in Jazan, Saudi Arabia during Spring 2011. Total DNA was extracted from leaves and used as template to amplify circular DNA using rolling circle amplification (RCA). Products were digested with PstI to linearize the helper viral genome, and associated alphasatellites, yielding a 2.8kbp and 1.4kbp fragment, respectively. The linearized fragments were cloned and sequenced. The 2.8 kb fragment was identified as the complete CLCuGeV genome, at 2780bp. It shared 99% nucleotide (nt) identity with previously studied isolates from the region, including KSA27 [HG530540]. Also, the 1.4kb cloned fragments represented three alphasatellites, KSA23-1, KSA23-5, KSA23-65, and one betasatellite, KSA23-8. The genome of alphasatellite KSA23-65 was 1630-bp in size. It was found to be a recombinant containing one fragment (1244-bp) that shared 99% nt identity with KSA27-3 alphasatellite [HG530556], and another fragment (386-bp) that shared 89% identity with betasatellite KSA27DI [HG530542], making it the largest alphasatellite reported to date.