Sequence comparisons of global chrysanthemum stunt viroid variants: Multiple polymorphic positions scattered through the viroid genome

The nucleotide sequences of cDNA clones of three chrysanthemum stunt viroid (CSVd) isolates (one each from the USA, China, and Australia) were determined and analyzed. The sequences of CSVd cDNA clones of the US and Australian isolates were both quasi-species, while the cDNA clones of the Chinese isolate contained only a single variant. A comparison of the nucleotide sequences of 117 isolates and cDNA clones obtained from 16 countries showed that in some cases identical CSVd isolates were found in several countries and from multiple locations within the same country. CSVd isolates differed as much in sequence between countries as within countries. Sequence variation was observed at 103 sites scattered through the CSVd genome, and was not associated predominantly with a single variable region, as was the case with several other viroids. While some sequence changes were associated with CSVd found in other host species, it is unknown if these changes are required for infection of those species.