First record of a tomato yellow leaf curl-like geminivirus in the Dominican Republic
A new disease of tomato causing symptoms similar to tomato yellow leaf curl geminivirus (EPPO A2 quarantine pest) was observed in the northwestern Dominican Republic in autumn 1992. In 1993, very serious losses (up to 90 %) on tomatoes occurred in the northwestern and southern regions and numerous populations of Bemisia tabaci were associated with the diseased plants. Spot hybridization assays were carried out with tomato mottle virus A component and tomato yellow leaf curl DNA probes. A strong hybridization was only observed with the tomato yellow leaf curl DNA probe. However, during amplification assays of nucleic acid extracts with specific primers, amplified DNA fragments (ca. 1400 bp and 400 bp) were slightly different from those obtained with tomato yellow leaf curl (1400 bp and no visible fragment). In addition, restriction pattern of the ca. 1400 bp fragment had a different sequence from the published sequences for tomato yellow leaf curl. The authors concluded that these results indicate that the disease observed in the Dominican Republic is caused by a tomato yellow leaf curl-like geminivirus, and that this is the first report of this type of geminivirus in the Western Hemisphere.
Sources
Polston, J.E.; Bois, D.; Serra, C.A.; Concepci¢n, S. (1994) First Report of a Tomato Yellow Leaf Curl-Like Geminivirus in the Western Hemisphere.
Plant Disease, 78 (8), p 831.