The natural occurrence of mixed infections and large populations of the polyphagous vector (Bemisia tabaci) are the main factors associated with the intensification of the genetic flow among begomoviruses in Neotropical areas, contributing to the emergence of novel recombinants. Here, high-throughput sequencing and metagenomic analyses were employed to discover and characterize a novel recombinant bipartite begomovirus, tentatively named "macroptilium bright yellow interveinal virus" (MaBYIV) in the weed Macroptilium erythroloma (Fabaceae). Recombination signals were detected in MaBYIV, involving bean golden mosaic virus (BGMV) and tomato mottle leaf curl virus (ToMoLCV) genome components. All of the original MaBYIV-infected M. erythroloma plants were found to have mixed infections with BGMV. MaBYIV was transmitted to bean and soybean cultivars via B. tabaci MEAM 1, indicating that M. erythroloma may play a role as a year-round reservoir of a potential new viral pathogen of economically important legume crops.
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