Detection of Tobacco Mosaic Virus Movement Protein in Association with Tobacco Nuclei Isolated from Intact and Detached Leaves

The movement protein (MP) of tobacco mosaic virus was observed to cofractionate with nuclei from intact and detached tobacco (Nicotiana tahacum cv. Xanthi-nn) leaves. When purified nuclei were treated with proteinase K, MP disappeared indicating that MP is localized close to but not inside nuclei. Moreover, the amount of MP was showti to increase greatly in nuclei isolated from detached leaves, thus facilitating the detection of MP. Accumulation close to nuclei was strongest early in infection, results indicating that it may be an early step in the pathway of MP from cell cytoplasm to plasmodesmata. Other TMV-specific proteins were not detected in the nuclei fraction.