Spreading of ESFY Phytoplasmas in Stone Fruit in Catalonia (Spain) |
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Authors: | E. Torres,M. P. Martí n,S. Paltrinieri,A. Vila,R. Masalles, A. Bertaccini |
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Affiliation: | Authors' addresses: Laboratori Sanitat Vegetal. Generalitat de Catalunya, Barcelona, Spain;;Real Jardín Botánico, CSIC, Madrid, Spain;;DiSTA, Patologia vegetale, Alma Mater Studiorum, Universitàdi Bologna, Italy;;ADV de la fruita del Baix Llobregat, St Vicençdels Horts, Spain;;Departament de Biologia Vegetal, Universitat de Barcelona, Barcelona, Spain (correspondence to E. Torres. E-mail: ) |
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Abstract: | A survey was carried out in nine stone fruit commercial orchards located in Barcelona province where plum and apricot trees of different cultivars showing European stone fruit yellows (ESFY) symptoms were present. A 4‐year survey with visual inspection of symptoms in one apricot orchard showed a rather high ESFY disease spread, also in a Japanese plum plantation newly infected plants were detected every year in a similar rate (about 2%). All the inspected symptomatic trees were polymerase chain reaction (PCR) tested and ESFY phytoplasma identity was confirmed by restriction fragment length polymorphism analyses and sequencing of ribosomal DNA amplification products. In apricot plantation the detection of ESFY phytoplasma was also tested on 69 asymptomatic trees sampled in summer 2002. The nested PCR with 16SrX group‐specific primers allowed detection of ESFY phytoplasmas in 50% of the trees that indeed showed symptoms by the next winter (2003). The molecular detection of ESFY phytoplasma in asymptomatic apricot trees indicates the risk of maintaining phytoplasma foci in the fields where eradication is based only on visual inspection. |
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Keywords: | European stone fruit yellows restriction fragment length polymorphism sequencing disease spread asymptomatic detection |
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