The Bombyx mori latent virus (BmLV) belongs to the unassigned plant virus family Tymoviridae and contains a positive-sense, single-stranded RNA genome. BmLV has infected almost all B. mori-derived cultured cell lines through unknown routes. The source of BmLV infection and the BmLV life cycle are still unknown. Here, we examined the interaction between BmLV and the insect DNA virus Bombyx mori nucleopolyhedrovirus (BmNPV). Persistent infection with BmLV caused a slight delay in BmNPV propagation, and BmLV propagation was enhanced in B. mori larvae via co-infection with BmNPV. We also showed that BmLV infectious virions were co-occluded with BmNPV virions into BmNPV occlusion bodies. We propose a new relationship between BmLV and BmNPV.
Keywords: BmLV; Bombyx mori latent virus; Bombyx mori macula-like virus; Tymoviridae; baculovirus; maculavirus; nucleopolyhedrovirus; occlusion body; persistent infection; silkworm.